Ab Initio
by HookEmHornsTX
Summary: Not your typical "Tony has a child and doesn't know" story. In fact, it's the opposite. This is his relationship with his kid. This story is now complete and is currently undergoing more editing. Even if this isn't your cup of tea, try it anyway.
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER**: I don't own anything you recognize and everything you don't.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: First, thanks goes out to my beta, Renthead07. She's very sweet and can put up with my random story ideas. However, any remaining mistakes you find are my own.

Second, I don't condone teenage sex/sex before marriage. I can on a spew about it, but I choose not to now. :D

Third, I tried to stick to canon as much as possible (aside from the obvious). As such, Tony's birthday on the show is July 19, 1968. (If my timeline years are messed up, I apologize now).

Last, the title is Latin for "From the beginning".

* * *

December 1985

Tony DiNozzo had made a lot of mistakes in his life. One of these, although he would never call it a mistake, more or less an accident that he enjoyed, came to him when he was seventeen years old. A senior in high school. But it started before his senior year. It started in his junior year, but didn't fully escalate until the middle of the school year.

The girl was two years older, and had been paying attention to him for some time. It had started innocently enough as friendship, but by the time his spring break rolled around, it had gone way beyond friendship. After that, little was said between them. She did approach him right before the end of term to drop the bombshell on him. She was pregnant, it was his. She didn't expect a long term relationship, or any commitment from him, and he didn't offer any, really. He did express interest in saying he wanted a part of their child's life, if she would let him. While she was hurt (she did in fact want commitment from him), at least he wasn't denying it and calling her names. Although he wasn't yet an adult, he was acting mature about the situation, at least outwardly.

Inwardly he was a nervous wreck. He hadn't even turned 17 – he wouldn't be 17 until July. And now he had fatherhood being thrown in his face. Oh how he wanted to get sick. His insides were tying in knots and he felt like his brain was about to explode. But he accepted responsibility. He was going to get a paternity test of course, just to be on the safe side. He didn't doubt the girl, but it was always nice to double check. And if it was his, he'd own up to his responsibility. While his father was never 'father of the year' material, the older man had told his son that if he was old enough and thought himself responsible to have sex, he could take care of any child he produced.

And that's what he did. He had a job, and while it wasn't a six figure career, minimum wage was better than none. He put some of his money into a bank, and the rest went to help out the girl, buying what the child needed and trying to help with doctor's visits. It wasn't much, but he helped. And she appreciated it, even though her college plans and a lot of other plans had been put off thanks to him.

Which was why when she went into labor towards the end of December, at one in the morning, she had her parents call Tony, so that he could be at the delivery. He drove like a maniac to the hospital; truth be told, he had been looking forward to this day. He knew that giving birth was a gross process, but if she wanted him there, he would be.

The hospital staff was uneasy at letting him be in the delivery room, despite him being the father. It took quite a bit of coaxing, but finally they let him, overlooking the fact that he was not yet 18. Fathers could be any age these days. But they were glad to see a teenage father owning up; that was a rare sight.

He had expected it to be an in and out situation. He'd go there, she'd deliver, he'd stay a spell and then go home. No one told him this part: the waiting part. She may have called him at one in the morning, but it was getting on to three in the afternoon before she was ready to give birth. To say that the birthing process was disgusting was the biggest understatement Tony had ever heard. It was beyond disgusting. There was blood and other fluids, she was screaming quite loudly, and he felt kind of bad for doing this to her. But when he dared to sneak a peek at his child's body coming out from its mother, he didn't mind the pain he caused her, or all the waiting he had done.

"Congratulation Miss Bradley and Mr. DiNozzo, it's a girl," the nurse said, holding up the messy, kind of rough-looking newborn. Another nurse then put a pair of medical scissors in his hand and ever-so-gently nudged him to cut the cord, telling him what to do in the process. He was elated. Even though he wasn't the first to hold the girl, that was her mother's pleasure, he figured, he was absolutely beaming. She was perfect. Despite the screams that emitted from the unhappy baby. After the mother had seen her and made sure she was indeed alright, the nurse took the baby and went to clean her up. This caused her to be even more unhappy. Was this a sign of things to come?

While the child was being looked after, another nurse approached him, asking if he had any experience with infants. He shook his head no; he had no siblings and had never been around infant cousins. She explained to him how to correctly hold a newborn, and that over time he would become more comfortable with her and himself, and be able to hold her different ways. She then talked to the new parents together about how to feed, bathe, and generally take care of a baby. The new mother, the nurse learned, had younger siblings, so it wasn't too difficult for her. Tony was kind of petrified.

His mind was not put at ease when the nurse handed him his little girl for the first time. He was petrified and ecstatic. She looked better now, he had to admit to himself. She was no longer covered in goo and blood, and actually looked human. But boy, was she beautiful. She looked like her mother, with only traces of him; for instance, what little hair she had, he could see what the color of his. While he had never expected to be a father at 17, now that she was here, he wouldn't have changed it. Now that he was holding her, he didn't want a paternity test. She was his. Even if there was any chance that he wasn't the father.

"Now, does she have a name?" asked one of the nurses, holding a clipboard in her hands.

Tony hadn't thought of that before, and looked to his ex-girlfriend. Apparently she had one in mind, because she looked to him before speaking up, "Allison Kristina."

Tony made a slight face, he thought it sounded better the other way, but he knew it was best to let her have her way, seeing as how she just pushed this beautiful baby into the world, "Hello, Kristina," he said, holding the baby up, "I'm your dad. It's nice to meet you."

The woman in the bed just rolled her eyes at the way he called the baby by her middle name. Leave it to Tony to do something so... not normal. But that's who he was, and she knew she couldn't change it.

"Last name?" the nurse asked, watching the bonding between father and daughter.

"DiNozzo," both parents said simply. It would have been wrong to deny Tony that privilege.

"Very well. She weighed 8 pounds, 14 ounces," the nurse said, "21 ¾ inches long."

Tony was shocked, staring at the little baby in his arms, "She certainly doesn't feel like almost nine pounds," he said.

"Most babies don't. Now if you'd please hand her over to her mother so I can instruct her on how to feed..." the nurse said, watching as Tony did so. He then stepped out of the room to go and tell his father the news. His life had changed. And he knew it. He wasn't going to be the type of dad that his father was. He was going to be there. And support her, and love her.


	2. Chapter 2

**DISCLAIMER**: Still not my property. But who wouldn't love to own NCIS?

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Again, thanks goes out to my beta, Renthead007.

I was really excited about seeing all the traffic chapter one got, it made me blush like crazy. And thank you to Meilea2010, Anne Fairymaker, and Renthead007 for reviewing, you made me very happy.

Also, I apologize about the shortness of this chapter, even though it is three sections. Some sections will be posted individually like chapter one was. Happy readings!

* * *

April 1986

Fatherhood was not easy. Who would have thought that? Overall, the baby was even-tempered. Sure, she had her fussy moments, but it was nothing he couldn't handle. Tony had been elevated from simple visits to being to go out for the day with her; something he absolutely loved. He had earned this privilege after the first time she was sick and he drove over at 11 PM to help with her. And now he was allowed weekends with her. This was something new. He could handle this.

If he could handle this, why was he at his wits end with a screaming infant resting on his chest at two in the morning? He wasn't exactly sure. But she was no where near happy as she had been earlier that day. He thought this would be a piece of cake. He was wrong.

Tony had done everything: he had fed her, changed her, burped her, rocked her, bounced her, and even attempted singing to her. Nothing would please this child. He was sure that her mother hadn't mentioned this on purpose. To spite him. He wasn't sure why anyone would fail to mention something as unreasoned crying.

So, while she cried, he had paced his bedroom while rubbing her back, holding her every which way but upside down. But now he was lying on his bed, listening to music while his daughter just cried and he was helpless. He figured this was one of those moments when he felt like utter crap as a parent.

Ultimately, after forty minutes of non-stop crying, she stopped. She looked to him, eyes red, and yawned. Now that she was exhausted, sleep would come easier, although he could hardly believe it. But when she did finally fall asleep, he ever so gently laid her in the crib by his bed before returning to the bed. This is something that would remain between the two of them. He then took a page out of his daughter's book and slept for a few hours before being woken up by a hungry baby. Something he could handle.

December 1986

He had been on home on Christmas break for three days before he couldn't resist the temptation to see his little girl. She was almost a year old, and he couldn't believe how big she had gotten in just a few months. But after playing all day, she was content enough to just lie on his torso as he was lying on the couch, watching a movie on television. Every so often, she would bring her head up off his shoulder and stare at him, poking his face, and say quite cheerily, "Da-da-da-da-da", to which Tony would smile to no end. At least she knew who he was. He was afraid she'd forget him since she didn't see him regularly. But that was far from his mind now.

"Look Kristina... See that green floaty blob... That's a poltergeist. His name is Slimer, but don't worry, they aren't really hurting him with those guns. So it's okay..." he explained to the baby, whom he was sure wasn't paying attention as her hand was playing with the collar of his shirt, a sign that she was near falling asleep, or was drowsy, at least. That was something she had done since she was a newborn. So he rubbed her back as he watched the movie. It was moments like these he knew he would treasure for all of time; even when she would cause him several gray hairs.

April 1995

Tony was finally living the good life. At least that's what he thought. He was finally a police officer, a job that appealed to him after his football injury in college knocked out chances of playing professionally. Of course, he was far from where he'd like to be. His ex had moved herself and their daughter to Maryland last summer, something that devastated him completely. Instead of being just a few short hours away, they were states away.

But he kept in regular contact with Kristina; that was something that would never change. When she had to practice her penmanship, she'd write him a letter; and every couple nights he would call her. Now that he was a full time officer instead of just an officer in training, he would have more flexibility with scheduling so that he could see her more. But he wasn't sure how vacation time would work so that she could come see him.

She was nearly ten years old now, and it seemed she had grown up in the blink of an eye. He wished he could just see her more. It seemed like he hadn't seen her enough between going to university and working. But when he did see her, it made everything worthwhile. To see her laugh and smile just made him float on air. She had him wrapped around her little finger and there wasn't a thing he could do about it.

Not that he was complaining, because he wasn't. He loved that little girl more than anything in the world. He just hoped that one day he would be able to live closer to her. But for now, he was stuck in Illinois, working his way up the food chain.


	3. Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER**: Still the same as the prior two chapters.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: First, thanks to Renthead007 again. :D Y'all should thank her too.

Second... Who has the best readers EVER? Me! Thanks to you guys, this story has had over 800 hits in the barely 48 hours it's been around. Which is why I'm updating now. I figured you guys deserved something special. Even though I only have three reviews, I don't care. What I like is seeing my hits get bigger and bigger every time I check. You guys are wonderful. Pat yourselves on the back and enjoy this chapter.

* * *

November 2002

7 years later, Tony DiNozzo had gotten his wish: he was closer to his daughter. Very close in fact. Right before Kristina started high school in 1999, her mother - a woman who had gotten more and more hateful towards Tony as years progressed - finally dumped her on her father's doorstep. Thankfully, he had just gotten the job in Baltimore. She was nearly 14 at the time, and didn't mind the transition; her mother had a not very respectable night job, and she wanted no part of that life. She had a very close relationship with her father, despite their distances and just enjoyed the fact that she wouldn't have to put up with her mom.

That was three years ago and Tony was no longer working for the Baltimore police department. He had received a very interesting job offer just a year prior that he jumped on immediately - the Naval Criminal Investigative Services, or N.C.I.S. for short, which investigated Marine and Naval homicides and other high level crimes. This appealed to him especially after he had transferred to the Baltimore homicide division.

He had to admit it wasn't fun trying to balance his career and his daughter, but they made it work. Yes, she was alone in the afternoons after school, but he trusted her. If he ever had to work overnight, she would stay with a neighbor or a friend. Thankfully, she didn't mind all too much. His days off were spent helping her with homework or just them hanging out. There were the times when she was positively allergic to his presence and she would run off with friends, but he knew she was a teenager and it wouldn't always be acceptable to hang around her father.

But now, he was somewhere in the balance of having a job and not having a job. The one thing that always preceded work was being a dad, and right now his baby girl was quite sick. She had been sick since the prior evening and he had called in early that morning saying that he was sick. No one at work knew the existence of Kristina and that was something he wanted. He didn't want to put her life in danger by some crazy axe-murderer knowing she was alive and using her to get to him. It was hard keeping it quiet but somehow he managed. Until now.

There was a knock at his door, and with a quick "I'll be back" to Kristina, he went to answer it. He was a bit shocked to see his boss, the forensic scientist, and the Medical Examiner, better known as Gibbs, Abby, and Ducky standing in front of his door. "Uh... hey, guys," he said a bit hesitantly.

"Feeling better, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked, noting that the junior field agent didn't look sick at all, only perhaps a bit tired. Although he did notice that he was wearing the same clothes as yesterday.

"Yeah Tony, you never call in sick. I mean, you've come in when you were near death and had to be sent home. We were worried," Abby said, wanting to rush in and hug him, but wasn't quite sure if it was safe.

"Jethro thought it a good idea if I came along to make sure you were indeed in good health," Ducky said, "And once Abigail heard the plan, she came along."

Tony smiled at the thought that they cared so much, but bit his lip, as he did not really want them to meet his daughter while she was in such bad health; he was afraid they'd judge him as a parent. But when a quiet voice called, "Anthony!" from the second bedroom, he blushed.

"Did we interrupt, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked eying his agent skeptically, especially if he skived off work to stay in bed all day with some woman.

Tony glanced back at the room, "Not what you're thinking, Boss. Ducky, I'm glad you came," he said, shutting the door behind the trio once he invited them in, "that sounded bad. I'm glad you are all here, but Ducky's a doctor," he mended and led them to his daughter's bedroom where the girl was lying in bed, quite ill. She had to have been quite irritated to call him by his first name.

"Oh Anthony, I'm a medical examiner not a doctor, but I can help to the best of my ability," he said, following Tony into the room.

Tony walked over to the girl's bed, "Hey, Scout," he murmured, a nickname he had given her as a child from the book To Kill A Mockingbird. "There are some people who want to meet you. My boss and a couple other friends. One's a doctor, okay?"

While she was somewhat conscious now she nodded, moving closer to him as he sat on her bed. His arm automatically went around her, feeling her shaking from fever. "I'm cold," she whispered.

"Not from this end, you're not," he replied to her, wanting to make her feel better instantaneously.

Gibbs looked to Tony. "Sister?" he asked, not wanting to assume the worst.

Abby watched the interaction, knowing that she had to be more than a sister. She was sure that if the girl were indeed his sister he'd be gentle with her and very careful, but he seemed almost too cautious and too frantic. Clearly there was a deeper connection.

Tony shook his head, "Nope, this is my kid. Gibbs, Ducky, Abby, meet Allison." All three were in a bit of shock after such a blunt statement, but nevertheless introduced themselves, whether or not the girl remembered them. "Ducky, she's had a fever off and on since last night. I've been keeping fluids in her, but nothing is really staying down- including medicine. I was about to take her to the hospital," he said.

Ducky nodded, "Indeed, that may be the best solution; that way she doesn't completely dehydrate. Has she been sick like this before?"

Tony shook his head. "Never. She's never sick. Her immune system is top notch. She takes vitamins and whatnot. She gets the occasional cold, but nothing this severe. I thought I could handle it without a doctor, that it was some bug..."

"I'd take her to the hospital, just to be on the safe side," Ducky concluded. "If you'd like, I'll go along."

Gibbs and Abby nodded. "Us too. It's always good to have company," Abby said to him. Tony was her friend, she figured he could use more of the support than his daughter.

Gibbs finally decided to ask, "How old is she?"

"Almost 17," he answered, "I kind of oops-ed when I was in high school. She was the result. Wouldn't trade her for the world though."

Gibbs was surprised at how mature Tony got in her presence; he was used to the joking kid from work. It was like he was in a separate world here. "Right. Want me to drive, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked him.

"I'll need someone to drive my car; that way I won't be stuck," he said.

Abby raised her hand, "I'll do it, Tony. It won't be a problem."

He nodded, "Alright," he said and pulled down the covers from the girl, who was shivering as her body tried to break the fever on its own. He put an arm under her knees and around her back to lift her, her arms going around his neck. "She's been drifting in and out of sleep since yesterday too. I'm worried," he said.

Gibbs nodded, "All fathers are nervous when their kids are sick, you can't do a thing to help them, and it makes you feel like the worse person on the planet."

Tony nodded in agreement and headed for the living room, pointing at his keys for Abby. He grabbed his old Ohio State pullover hooded sweatshirt for Kristina, but knew it probably wouldn't help; at least it would be familiar.

* * *

It was two in the morning when Kristina's fever finally broke. Tony had passed out in the chair after being awake for so long; however, another friendly -to some extent- face was awake. But she didn't know this person.

"Dad?" she asked weakly.

Gibbs chuckled, "No, I'm your dad's boss. Call me Gibbs."

"Dad wants to keep me on the down low. We talked about it." Her voice sounded tired and dry.

"I won't rat you out, don't worry," he said jokingly, trying to bring a smile to her face, if possible.

"Where's he at? Where am I? What happened?" she asked him, sitting up in the bed, however slowly it may take her.

"He's over in the chair, asleep; and you're at the hospital. You had quite the high fever and were dehydrated." he said, feeling her forehead.

"I feel like I wet the bed," she murmured.

"Your fever probably broke. You're not as pale as you were. I'm going to go get the nurse," he said, standing up and heading out the room. He returned shortly, a woman trailing behind him.

She looked pleased to see her patient conscious but kept her voice down, as Tony was still asleep, "I'm glad to see you awake," she said, taking the girl's temperature, as she checked her other vitals. "100.9, still not where I would like you to be," she murmured.

"Is there anyway you could change the sheets? Mine are soaked. So is this hospital gown..."

The nurse nodded, "I'll bring you another gown and a change of sheets," she said and left the room.

Gibbs looked to the sleepy girl. "You sure you want all this excitement now? It's two in the morning."

"I'll sleep better this way. Thanks for sitting up with me. You don't have to."

"I know. I would have been up anyway."

She nodded, "Thank you though," she said, as the nurse returned, removing things so it would be possible for the girl to change, and handed her another hospital gown and dressing gown, "Can you stand?" the nurse asked.

Kristina went to stand up slowly, her head feeling like it was spinning. "That might be a bit much..."

"I'll help," Tony said, waking up and stretching.

"Daddy!" she said happily. "I'm sorry for worrying you."

He shook his head, "You didn't do this on purpose," he said and went over to help her to the bathroom, while the nurse started changing the linens.

The pair returned in five minutes, with her practically falling asleep as they walked. Once she arrived at her bed, Tony removed the dressing gown and laid her back in bed covering her with the blankets, and kissing her forehead. She was already asleep.

Gibbs was impressed by his actions, "You're a good father, DiNozzo."

Tony smiled, "I try to be. I didn't want to end up like my dad. I'd give her the world if I could. By the way she thinks you're sweet."

Gibbs chuckled. "Go back to sleep, DiNozzo."

"What about you, Boss?"

"I've pulled all-nighters before. Besides, someone has to be awake, just in case."

Tony nodded, getting situated in his chair once more. He was grateful for the people who were slowly becoming family. They accepted him and his daughter. That's all that mattered. He would sleep better knowing that she was getting better and that she would be home soon. To some, it wouldn't be the perfect night's rest, but to him, it was the best sleep he had gotten ever. His baby was better; if not 100 percent, close to it.


	4. Chapter 4

**DISCLAIMER**: Must we go through with this? Not mine

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Renthead007 is still amazing. Just to let you all know!

You guys make me so proud! So here's chapter four. *hugs for everyone*

* * *

May 2004

'Ah, it's good to be home' the young woman thought, fresh from her first year of college. However, things weren't going so smoothly. Her flight had been later than scheduled, the airport lost her bags, her father wasn't home (although this wasn't a surprise), and now he had gone and changed the locks on the door. Perhaps she should have told him she was coming in this early. They had anticipated her arrival to be in a couple weeks.

She had a couple of options: sit out in front of the door until he arrived, go to where he worked and get a key, or sit at their neighbor's apartment. She opted for the third option first, but when the neighbor didn't answer (just her luck), she tried out the second option.

She knew vaguely where it was, from where he had driven by with her. So it wouldn't be too terribly difficult. The one thing she was unsure of was if she'd be allowed to go up to her father's floor. She figured some of his team knew of her existence, so why worry?

Hailing a cab from the street, Kristina gave the driver the address of the NCIS building and was ready to give instructions when he took off. After a very terrifying ten minute drive and several traffic laws were broken, they arrived. She paid the guy and got out, trying to stop her legs from shaking as she walked up the front doors.

Like she figured, going through security was nothing, but trying to get clearance to go to her father's floor was the difficult part. After showing the guards identification, they called Gibbs for clearance, after a ten minute ordeal. He recognized her name and said for them to send her up. Thankfully, the elevator ride went smoothly, and upon stepping out of the elevator, looked for her father's head in the sea of people. He wasn't there. Neither was Gibbs.

She walked apprehensively on the outside wall, trying to find something familiar of his. She saw his bag, so that must mean he was here in the building, she rationalized. While there was only one person at the four that were situated there, she was hesitant to approach; she didn't know how this person would react.

"Excuse me, I'm looking for Anthony DiNozzo..." she trailed off, when the woman looked up from the report she was writing.

Caitlin Todd looked at the young woman in front of her, wondering as to how this girl dressed in a burnt orange Texas shirt and blue jeans was related to Tony. "Are you... uh..." How would she word this, so it wouldn't be inappropriate? Perhaps there was no other way. "... A girlfriend?" she asked. This girl couldn't be no more than 17 or 18 years old. She knew Tony would chase anything in a skirt, but everyone had limits!

Kristina's eyes flew up at that idea. "Oh! No! That's absurd! I'm... his daughter," she said hesitantly.

Kate eyed her now. Tony had never mentioned this in the year she had worked with him. "Does he know?"

The girl nodded. "If he doesn't, he really shouldn't be working here," she said.

"May I see some ID?" Kate asked She had to be certain and ask. She may have gotten past the security guards, but for a pretty face, they'd let anyone waltz in.

"Todd, let her go, she's not a terrorist," came a familiar voice to Kristina's ears. However, it wasn't the voice she wanted to hear.

"Agent Gibbs! How nice to see you again," she said, turning to the man. After her visit in the hospital, she had been steadily growing closer to the three people who came to visit – Gibbs, Abby, and Ducky. She corresponded with the latter two via e-mail, but Gibbs didn't seem all that technologically savvy, so she wrote him handwritten letters. She was pleased when he responded.

He smiled, "Good to see you too. What are you doing here?" Ever blunt this man was.

Kate's mind was blown that Gibbs knew this young woman. Of course, then again, she was sure Gibbs knew everything that went on, so it shouldn't be a surprise. "I'm sorry to interrupt," she said, "and I apologize for my rudeness when you first arrived, but you're really _Tony's_ daughter?"

Kristina nodded at Gibbs' statement, "I decided to surprise him by coming home early, and he surprised me by changing the locks on the door, and our neighbor wasn't home. So short of sitting around hours on end..." she trailed off, looking to Kate. "Yes, why?" she asked, somewhat defensively.

Kate blushed, "I didn't mean for that to sound so rude. I'm not getting off to a good start am I? It's just that Tony doesn't seem the paternal type is all."

Gibbs answered for Kristina, "You'd be surprised, Kate," he simply said.

She shrugged, "True. But let me introduce myself, I'm Caitlin Todd," she said, sticking out her hand to shake. "You can join the others and call me Kate, though."

Kristina nodded, "I'm Allison," she said. She wasn't fond of her first name, but Tony was the only person who called her by her middle name. "Feel free to make up a nickname for me," she finished jovially. She looked around the place again, "Where's Dad?" she asked Gibbs.

"Abby's lab. Follow me," he said to her simply, leading her to another elevator.

The ride down was filled with them talking about her school, a very popular, but academically strong university in Texas – The University of Texas in Austin. However, when they reached the floor, he put a finger to his lips to shush her as they walked out, using his stealth skills to sneak up on the two – Tony and Abby- unaware.

"Come on, Abby. It's not possible for someone to have two different fingerprints."

"Evidence doesn't lie, Tony. This guy does!"

"Impossible!"

"Nothing is impossible."

"Ever try to slam a swinging door, Abs?" Gibbs asked, causing the two to jump.

"Boss... will you explain to Abby that no one can have two sets of prints?" He hadn't seen his daughter yet, evidently. She was actually biding her time.

"Well, what's the situation?"

"This guy left prints behind, and he's in the system, only the forefingers don't match..." he trailed off, catching movement behind Gibbs, "What are you doing here so early?" he asked, practically leaping over the table between them to reach her.

Kristina smiled, and moved to hug her dad, causing Abby to "Aw..."

"It's the little DiNozzo! Are you here to stay?" Abby asked her.

From the embrace of her father, she responded, "Until fall, then I'm at school again."

She hated thinking about leaving again. When she left for school, it had done a number on both Tony and herself. But UT was an excellent school; she couldn't turn them down, even for a school closer to home.

After being in her father's arms, she finally broke down crying into his shirt. Tony was surprised by her actions; she hardly ever cried, at least in front of people she didn't know well. Gibbs was surprised to see this, and took this as his cue to leave, heading up to the bullpen. Abby still had work to do, so she gestured for Tony to take her into her office.

Tony nodded his thanks and gently moved Kristina to the other room, "What's going on?" he asked, perching her on a stool, standing next to her, arms around her.

"This last semester was horrible, Daddy!" she said, still crying.

"Well, start at the beginning."

"Remember that guy I was seeing?" she asked.

Tony remembered all too well, wanting to say something about the kid, but decided to hold his tongue. "Yeah..." That kid had decided to propose to his daughter two months into their relationship. It was the dumbest thing he had ever seen her do when she accepted.

"Well. We broke up in March and just a few days later, he got with my best friend," she said, crying harder now.

He sighed. Her first serious broken heart. Tony knew there was nothing he could do to heal that hurt. "I'm sorry, Scout. Is there anything I can do? I can buy you a kitten."

She shook her head, "I just want to forget him... but I can't! I've tried so hard, but I can't get him out of my head."

"Well, you're home now. You won't forget him, but I can assure you that with time, that hurt will go away. To be honest, you'll never stop loving him. He was your first love."

She leaned against him and asked, "Why does this happen?"

"Because we're human, and happily-ever-afters are what we want. However, life interferes. You'll find someone who makes you the happiest you've ever been in your whole life, and then this won't seem like that bad."

"He made me happiest..." she muttered.

He just ran his fingers through her hair and held her as she cried. Again, there was nothing he could do to stop her cries and he felt horrible. But he knew by just comforting her, she knew he was trying.

Kate had seen the tail end of their interactions, "Who knew, Gibbs was right," she said to Abby.

"Tony is the best dad ever," Abby said nodding.


	5. Chapter 5

**DISCLAIMER**: Still not the owner. Thanks

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Once again, thanks to Renthead007. Without her, you guys wouldn't be having updates.

Also, my dear lads/lasses, there is a poll on my profile page. Check it out. Answer. Please. Thank you.

And, you guys are simply amazing. I had over 1,000 hits today, and over 2,000 total. As I've said before, whose readers are simply the best hands down? That's right, mine are. AKA. You!

Also, I had another idea for a chapter, but I'm really iffy on it. I'll write it out, but I'm not sure if I'll post it. Don't worry. It's not anytime soon on the timeline. I don't think. Oh well. Bear with me. Just read.

An afterthought to the Author's Note... I added a second poll that really needs your responses. Like if I don't get results, then well... some may not like others :D

* * *

July 2004

Kristina currently would not agree with Abby's sentiments that Tony was the best dad ever. She loathed the man standing opposite her. "You can't give me a curfew! I'm an adult!" she exclaimed, hands on her hips.

"You live with me! Besides, I'm your father! I know what's good for you!" Tony argued back, glaring at his offspring. They hadn't argued since she was in high school. He had thought those days were over.

"How is me being home by midnight good for me?" She glared right back.

"Anything that happens after midnight usually is not good."

"You trust me to go to school in another state, but you don't trust me to stay out past twelve?"

"I don't trust other people who are out after midnight!"

"But I'm with friends!"

"I'd rather you run around with terrorists than those people you call friends!"

"Dad!"

"Allison! No. The only reason I let you run around with them is because I trust your judgment."

"Dad! Come on! 1:30!... You never call me 'Allison'..."

"You never give me reason to. And no. No 1:30. Midnight or nothing."

"Life has changed since you were my age! People aren't as crazy as they were then!"

"Life hasn't changed. I still had you when I was your age! People are worse! Do you think my job involves rainbows and flowers? I've seen people murdered for no damn good reason. People get shot for just looking at someone!"

"Dad! You can trust me! Let me stay out later! You're not even paying for this. It's my money!"

"I don't care if the President paid for this! No! You're not staying out past midnight in an area of D.C. that isn't that safe! I'm not sold on you going there in the first place!"

"Please?"

"No."

She decided to play a card that she had never used. "Mom would have let me."

"Your mother would have let you become a whore! How can you even compare when you haven't seen her in years! She didn't even come for your high school graduation! But that's it, you're not going at all." His temper was shot now.

She glared at him with malice in her eyes as she stomped off to her room.

Tony sat on the couch, a headache building. She had never pulled these stunts before. So why was she starting this now? His first mistake was going to take a shower to alleviate the stress in his shoulders and the tension from his head. His second mistake was trusting an angry teenager to obey him.

As soon as she heard his bedroom door close, and then heard the shower turn on a few moments later, she was out the door. She was an adult, and could make her own decisions. She didn't need his clearance.

Tony hadn't heard from her for the rest of the evening. He figured that she needed time to cool off, so he simply let her be. He wasn't about to go back on his word and say she could go, but he did feel a bit bad. However, the call he received at 2:30 in the morning made him stop feeling bad.

As he walked into the precinct, he showed his NCIS badge to the police, "I'm here to pick up my kid," he said, trying to not let his aggravation show through.

The guy nodded, "She was clean when we found her. Blood Alcohol Content was nonexistent. Too bad her friends couldn't say the same thing."

"What happened?"

"Reckless driving – speeding and swerving. The driver's BAC was .23, but he was still functioning. They decided that running from the police would be a fun idea. After we stopped them, found marijuana on a couple of the kids. And cocaine on another."

Tony's eyes widened, "Was she..."

"She's clean, as far as we know. Got them all tested. We're not going to charge her with anything. Apparently she didn't know about that last bit or that they were presently using. We put her in the holding cell with the others. I'll bring her out," he said and disappeared behind a closed door.

Tony stood with his arms crossed; he was very, very angry with his daughter.

The officer returned with the girl in tow, her head down, "Here you go Agent DiNozzo. She's all yours."

Tony nodded politely to the officer, "Come on," he growled to Kristina. This was the first time she had done this to him, and he had no idea what to do.

The drive home was silent, filled with tension, and she was waiting for the outburst. Truth was, Tony had no idea what to do. His temper had been pushed to the limits, but he couldn't speak rationally right now.

Once at the apartment, she tried to escape to her room. "I don't think so," Tony finally said. She resigned to sitting on the sofa, head down.

"Dad..."

"Nope. No talking."

She nodded, staring at the floor.

"Allison Kristina DiNozzo. Where was your brain? Has my job over the years not sunk in to you that drinking and driving is dangerous?" he growled out. "Why did you get in the car with them when you knew they had been drinking?" But despite all this, his tone was calm. He couldn't yell at her. He was sure she would have tuned him out. Besides, he got quieter the angrier he was, usually.

She looked up to him. "I was angry at you."

"So you wanted to splatter yourself across the interstate by being in a car accident with a drunk driver? If you had wanted that, you could have gotten behind the wheel drunk yourself."

"I wanted to prove to you that I was an adult capable of making my own decisions!" she snapped.

"Don't raise your voice toward me! All you succeeded in doing was proving to me that you're an idiot sometimes. You're smarter than that! You don't need friends like that! If you wanted to prove _anything _'adult-like'" he indeed use air quotes,_ "_it would have been that you drove everyone home."

She nodded. "What's my punishment?"

"Not having my trust for now, for one. I don't know about the rest. We'll talk about it in the morning," he spat out. "Just be lucky I didn't call Gibbs to bail you out. You would have been toast."

He walked to his room, catching himself before slamming the door. His daughter caused him such heartache, but he never loved her any less.


	6. Chapter 6

**DISCLAIMER**: Still not mine.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Once again, kudos to Renthead007.

Wow you guys. Yesterday I received over 1,250 hits. You guys are simply amazing. If you remember from Chapter 5's note, this was intended to be the final chapter. After getting more ideas, I'm still uncertain, and your votes are needed.

If I continue, chapter... 10 perhaps would be out of order date wise. I'm not sure if I am terribly fond of that idea. Can you blame me? I know I can go back and organize it all, but it would mess up a lot of things. Would you guys be cool with letting chapters be out of order. I have the next three chapters written, only one of which is editted. Chapter 8 (which was written as chapter 7) is the one. Chapter seven technically hasn't been typed up yet, but I wrote down chapter nine last night.

Enjoy chapter 6. You can review if you want. I 3 my readers.

P.S. What I thought was really funny was in 'Dagger' (I'm watching season 6) Tony mentions 'how can people work with someone for three years and not know they have a kid?' I was all 'Oh, Tony. If only _you_ knew.'

**I FORGOT TO ADD**: I have never seen this epsiode, so if you're confused. I'm sorry! I know, I'm a bad viewer. But I think I did a decent job! This is episode 5x01, Bury Your Dead and sort of 4x24 Angel of Death.

* * *

May 2007

For the second time in her life, Kristina found herself at NCIS headquarters. She had just arrived back from Texas, her graduation was the previous day, which was the reason she was there. After going through security without any hassle this time, she found herself standing in front of Gibbs' desk, a confused expression on his face.

"I'm surprised to see you here. What brings you around?" he asked the woman.

"Where's my dad? Is he on a case?"

Gibbs shook his head, "He was supposed to have been with you for your graduation. Was he not there?"

This time, she shook her head, "No. He never showed."

Gibbs looked over to the man, who was sitting with a surprised look on his face, "McGee, trace DiNozzo's phone."

Kristina had a vague recognition of the man from Agent Todd's funeral; but apparently, he didn't remember her, either. She definitely did not know the woman who sat at Kate's old desk. "I'm Allison," she said after a few moments.

"Tim McGee," he said nodding, trying to find Tony's phone, "We met at Kate's funeral, briefly," he said to her.

The dark-haired woman spoke up next. "I am Ziva David. I started here after Agent Todd was killed."

Kristina nodded, "Pleasure to meet you both," she said simply, wringing her hands. It wasn't like him to miss events like this; he was always there unless he told her otherwise. While he couldn't disclose information about why he couldn't attend, he would tell her he couldn't due to work. He hadn't said a thing this time.

It was then that the director of NCIS walked into the bullpen, staring at the young lady in front of her, "May I help you?" Jenny asked.

"I'm looking for Anthony DiNozzo... and you are?" Kristina asked.

"Jennifer Sheppard, director of NCIS. And you?"

"Allison DiNozzo, Anthony's daughter."

Jen looked shocked, she hadn't realized Tony had a daughter, let alone one this old. There was nothing in his personnel records. Had she known, she may not have offered him this assignment. He didn't refuse it, either, so perhaps the girl wasn't in his life? "I wasn't aware of this fact... How come he's never mentioned you before?"

She shrugged, "He doesn't like to mix business and family. The only reason I'm here now is because he never showed for my graduation. He doesn't do that," she finished, trying to figure out the woman before her.

"High school?" Jen asked, doing the same to her, trying to see what she knew or didn't know. She didn't look to be that old.

"No, university. I went to school in Texas. I'm 21."

Jen nodded. "If I ask you to leave, will you?"

"Depends. If it involves my dad, no. I want to know why he missed out. We had this planned for months. He even arranged time off."

The director nodded, she vaguely recalled that form going by her. Looks like she was the one who messed up things for Tony. Best not let that out right now. That was something in due time. "McGee, run DiNozzo's phone."

"Already on it, Director."

"Director... is DiNozzo in trouble?" Gibbs asked, eying his boss from behind his desk.

"His girlfriend is La Grenouille's daughter," she said simply.

This was news to Kristina's ears. "La Grenouille? Girlfriend?" she questioned the director.

Jenny turned to her, now that the younger woman was sitting in Tony's chair, "You're on a need-to-know basis. And you don't need to know that much."

Both McGee and Ziva were caught off-guard when the director had mentioned who his girlfriend was, but McGee spoke first, "He's been on assignment?"

Gibbs looked furious that his agent had been on an assignment without anyone telling him so. He was going to have a few words with his boss; after DiNozzo had been found, that was.

"He contacted me on his alias' phone. He wasn't to do that unless he thought his cover may be blown," Jenny said, and relayed a number to McGee. "Trace that one," she said to him, as he quickly got on it.

McGee shook his head. "No luck. I'll try any GPS and other satellite feeds," he said, typing it all into the computer.

He pulled up traffic cameras as they found his car, putting it onto the plasma that was between his and Tony's desk. Kristina swung her chair around to watch, unaware that this is what her father did all day. She knew some of what he had done in the police force, but this was an entirely new ball game.

"He is not answering either of his phones," Ziva said, hanging up her phone, looking at the screen with the rest of them.

"How deep is his cover?" Gibbs questioned, watching the car on the screen.

"He'll be safe."

"You had best hope so, Jen."

McGee turned so he was still watching the screen and talking to Gibbs at the same time, "He's not being followed Boss...es," he added. "He might be the one following someone. There's that possibility," he said to the group, hoping Tony as safe as well.

It was then that the unspeakable happened. As his car – a vintage Ford Mustang– rounded a corner, it exploded.

There were three simultaneous noises, an "Oh my God" from Jenny, a "Tony!" from Ziva, and a little squeak from his daughter, who couldn't believe her eyes. She tried to speak but no sound would come forth. She looked to the others, a mixture of shock and horror on all of their faces. She had hoped that perhaps they had seen something different than what she witnessed.

Gibbs was the first to recover. "Gear up," he said to McGee and Ziva.

Jenny looked to him, "I'm going along too. He was my agent."

He nodded, and looked to Kristina, who had the expression of wanting to cry, but was holding it in. The grief she felt at that moment was indescribable. It was worse the pain she felt when her first love broke up with her. Tony was her best friend; she was closer to him than anyone else on the face of the planet, even her own roommate, of which she shared everything with. She couldn't believe it. She didn't want to believe it. The pain in her chest was getting to be too much.

Gibbs walked over to her, "Let me take you to Abby, alright?" he asked her gently, putting his arm around her to help her stand. No child, regardless of age, should have witnessed something as grizzly as that happen to their parent.

She nodded, but was pretty much numb to any other emotion other than the heartbreak she felt.

They were on the elevator when the tears finally poured forcefully. Gibbs kept his arm around her, "Hey now. We don't know that was really him. It could have been someone else," he said, trying to remain positive.

"Who else would have been driving his car?" she tried her best to stem the flow of tears. Trying to think positive thoughts seemed impossible.

He couldn't answer her as they stopped on Abby's floor. He led her out of the car and into the lab.

Abby stared at the girl, who was trying her best not to cry once again. "Gibbs. What happened?" she asked, hurrying over to the pair.

Gibbs explained the best he could; if anyone could convince the young woman that it wasn't really Tony, it would be Abby.

Abby felt the pain in her heart. Kate's death had been absolutely horrid, but until they knew for sure, she was to remain positive. She couldn't lose another friend like this. Not when they almost lost Gibbs just the year prior. She did the motherly thing and put her arms around Kristina as Gibbs left, comforting her.

* * *

The team had come back an hour and a half later with evidence for Abby, Gibbs being the deliverer, "How's she holding up, Abs?" he asked.

"As best as she can. You can't get angry at her for crying. She's not used to being objective like we are. All she knows is that Tony is gone. She believed what she saw," Abby said, eying the drink Gibbs had. "She's asleep under the desk," she said, pointing.

Gibbs nodded, and handed her the drink, but before letting go, he simply said, "This evidence may be lying."

She nodded, and took the drink, relishing in it. She knew she had a big job a head of her.

* * *

An hour later, Kristina was sitting on a stool in Abby's lab, looking quite down. She was trying to remain objective like Abby was rambling on about. She was shocked when Ducky burst into the lab, a big smile on his face. "Ah! Allison and Abigail! Great news! It wasn't Anthony!" he said happily.

Both women looked shocked, "What?" Abby exclaimed.

"Do you remember when he had Y Pestis?" the older man asked.

Both Kristina and Abby nodded; who didn't? Especially since right after, Kate was killed.

"Because of the Y Pestis, his lungs were heavily scarred. The man in autopsy is not our Anthony, because his lungs aren't scarred!" he said happily.

Kristina's eyes widened, a grin on her face, "Really? That's excellent news! But where is he?" he asked.

Abby looked to Ducky questioningly. "That's a good question, Duck man."

Ducky merely shrugged. "I told Jethro, so I suppose they're looking for him now," he said to the pair, and left the room.

Abby and Kristina hugged each other excitedly.

"Do you think Agent Gibbs will let me sit upstairs with them?" Kristina asked, suddenly.

"You can check... worst thing he can do is say no," Abby said to her, and watched the young woman hurry away and into the elevator. She was quite excited about the news that one of her good friends wasn't dead after all. It had gone from a happy day, to a very depressing day, back to a very happy day.

* * *

When Kristina had entered the bull-pen, Trent Kort headed for the elevator, giving a Jenny a very nasty look. He, however, bumped into Tony, who was on his way out of the elevator. Following the bump and a sarcastic remark from Tony, Trent shoved him into the elevator, which caused Gibbs, McGee and Ziva to draw their weapons, pointing it at the two men.

Tony walked out of the elevator with a cocky grin on his face, seeing his teammates holster their weapons. "What? No balloons?" he asked them, walking over to his desk. However, he never made it to his desk, as he was engulfed in a hug, and hit at the same time. He looked down to his daughter, arms going around her, "What was the hit for?" he questioned.

"You missed my graduation and made me think you were dead," she said, her head against his chest.

"I'm sorry Scout. I intended on being there... it's just... things got a bit out of my control. I'm sorry. I wanted to be there so bad. And I'm sorry you had to witness all of this. This is why I don't talk about work. You would have a heart attack if you knew all the times I could die in one day. Both from Ziva and enemies," he said, throwing a grin to his partner, who glared at him.

She nodded, "I understand. I know this is your job... it just worries me..."

"I know. But try not to let it, Kristina. These guys are skilled. We protect each other. They have my back, I have theirs."

"Alright. I'm glad you're safe. I'm pretty sure I have to leave, now that I know you're safe."

Tony nodded, "Yeah, might not be a bad idea. I'll be home tonight. I promise," he said and hugged her one final time, before letting her go toward the stairs. Then he was summoned up to Jenny's office to tell them what went on over the course of the last two days. It was a tedious process, but no where near as bad as writing out the report would be.

* * *

It was right before Tony was leaving that Ziva approached him, "Tony, I have a question. Perhaps it is an American thing... but you did not call your daughter by her given name. I understand nicknames, of course, but what you called her wasn't the typical endearment."

Gibbs nodded, throwing in his two cents. "Yeah... where did you get the nickname 'Scout' from?"

Tony grinned, "She reminded me of the little girl from 'To Kill a Mockingbird' when she was younger. Right before she was born, I read the book. It just stuck."

Gibbs rolled his eyes. "Alright, DiNozzo. I'll see you all tomorrow," he said and watched his team leave.

* * *

Tony was home half an hour after that, stopping to get take away for supper for the both – this time pizza. When he walked in, he saw his daughter fast asleep on the couch. He grinned and kicked off his shoes, shrugging off his suit coat as well, and lifted her upper body, sitting so that her head was on his shoulder, as he ran his fingers through her hair, like he did when she was little. The movement caused her to wake up a bit.

"I'm so glad you're alive," she murmured to him as she fell back asleep. He just smiled and shut his eyes, glad to have his little girl home from university.


	7. Chapter 7

**DISCLAIMER**: It's chapter seven. We all know by now it's not mine.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: We're playing a game this time around, and for the next few chapters. It's called "Ignore Mistakes while Tex's Beta is Out." It's an easy game. And everyone wins. Who doesn't like that?

But on a positive note, Chapters Nine and Ten are written and ready for publishing. However, Chapter Eight has yet to be wrote down. Don't worry, my awesome readers. You will have Chapter Eight shortly! You guys are still so incredibly awesome. Everyday beats out the previous numbers of hits just by a little bit and it makes my heart swell.

Keep up the good work guys. There was over 1,400 hits on this story yesterday (4/21) with a grand total of over 3,500 since I uploaded chapter one on 4/18.

* * *

September 2008

Kristina would have to have said that the past few months were uninteresting, if you didn't take into account Ziva being sent back to Israel, McGee being with the Cyber Crime Division, and her father being an Agent Afloat and having been out to sea for the last four months with at least another three to go. Also to be ignored was the new team. Abby had told her the details concerning them. But yes, it was uninteresting. However, Kristina would soon wish she hadn't been so bored with 'uninteresting' as her life soon became 'interesting'.

It all started in early September. She was starting the first of two final semesters to receive her Masters degree, and was to meet one of her classmates so they could get a head start on a project. She was in the kitchen of the apartment she shared with her father when a knock sounded at the door, "It's unlocked!"

Expecting to see her friend walk through, she was mightily surprised to see Gibbs walk into the apartment, badge out. "Agent Gibbs. Surprised to see you here. Coffee?"

He shook his head. "Official business, Miss DiNozzo."

She seemed readily surprised again as the three agents followed behind him into the apartment.

"Is everything okay?" she questioned him, worrying about her father.

He nodded, "Unless you're Ensign Gregory Jones."

"What happened to Greg?"

"You know him then?" Agent Brent Langer asked from behind his boss, who gave him a pointed look to shut up.

Gibbs looked back to Kristina, "He was found dead in Anacostia Park. Your number was the last he dialed."

She nodded, "I know. I talked to him. We were to meet up."

"When was the last you saw him?"

"Probably 45 minutes ago. He was at the park, running the trail, and I met him there. He said to give him half an hour, and he would meet me here. We had plans to go study. He called thirty minutes ago to say he was running late and to give him an additional fifteen minutes. I thought it was him when you knocked."

Langer and Agent Daniel Keating exchanged a look. They had their murderer, they were sure.

Gibbs looked at the woman before him, taking out his notebook this time, "So. You were at Anacostia park at least 45 minutes ago. How long is the drive from there to here?"

"15 minutes."

"So you arrived home approximately 30 minutes ago?"

She nodded.

"Anyone to verify that?"

"I sent an e-mail to my dad about 5 minutes ago."

"But no one saw you thirty minutes ago?"

"My neighbor came by ten minutes ago."

Gibbs sighed. That was a twenty minute window she could be lying in. His gut said to trust her but he knew he had to be objective. Why would DiNozzo's kid want to jeopardize her future?

He shut the little notebook in his hand. "Why didn't you stay with Ensign Jones?"

"He was finishing his run. He was going to go back to his apartment and take a shower. Then he was to come here."

"What's his address?"

She gave him the address, before asking a difficult question, "Am I a suspect?"

"Until we rule you out."

She nodded, "Do I have to go with you now?"

He nodded.

"But you have no evidence to put me there."

He cocked an eyebrow, "Why are you so worried if you're innocent?"

She blushed, "No handcuffs?"

"We have to follow protocol."

"When do you follow protocol?"

Gibbs let a small grin slip out and held up his hand to stop Langer from moving forward to handcuff the woman. "Give me one good reason why we shouldn't handcuff you."

"I'll give you two. One, I'm willing to cooperate with you and I'm not resisting arrest. Second, one of your agents would end up hurt and I don't want assault of a federal agent on my record."

Gibbs looked to her confused, "I understand the first, but the second?"

"Being restrained scares me. I have no control over my body and that bothers me. I get violent when I'm restrained. To the point that if someone puts their arms around me and catches me off guard, I will not hesitate to punch them in the face. A university boyfriend found that out the hard way. It's best if there are no cuffs."

Gibbs nodded, "We can't just let you walk out on your own. Someone will have to hold onto your arm."

Langer stepped forward again, and again was stopped. What was the point of them coming along if they couldn't do anything?

"You, Agent Gibbs, please," she said simply and moved to put on her shoes. This was very humiliating, she had to admit that. But thankfully her father wasn't here. That would be worse. But she knew she was innocent. She'd have to just wait until evidence proved her innocent.

* * *

She had been sitting in Interrogation for close to two hours before Abby burst through the door, followed shortly by Keating.

"Abby. You can't come in here. She's a suspect!" he said, a bit of a breath from having chased the forensic scientist throughout the building.

Abby chose to ignore him and hugged Kristina, "Oh! Don't they know they have the wrong person?" she exclaimed.

Kristina merely chuckled. "Abby. You're the one who's to be clearing my name with evidence."

"Technically, not really. That is the agents jobs. And oh.. I wish I could tell you everything," she said a bit antsy. "Does Tony know?"

"No. And he's not finding out Abby. We both know he's pitching a fit as it is. We don't need him jumping ship to try and get back here."

A light bulb went off in Keating's head. That's why her last name was so familiar. She was related to Agent DiNozzo. But there was nothing in the records that connected them. She had no record whatsoever. Except for a slight infraction when she was a bit younger. He'd have to tell Langer and Lee.

Abby nodded, "Don't worry. I'll prove your innocent. Even if they don't- evidence doesn't lie." she said to the woman, hugging her again.

Kristina reciprocated her hug, glad to have a familiar, friendly face. "Thanks for the support Abby, but I know I'm innocent."

The older woman nodded, "Good attitude. Tony would be proud."

Gibbs cleared his throat, causing the three people in the room to jump. He cast a disproving look to Keating, who tried to stammer out that he tried to stop Abby. "Abs." he said and gestured with his head towards the door.

"Right-o, Gibbs. But remember," she said, stopping on the short distance from the table to the door, "This is Tony's daughter. Our Tony. Our fun loving, big kid Tony. Who wouldn't raise a killer. It's a rule you know. 'Police Officer's cannot have murderer's for children'." She ignored the look Gibbs was giving her and left the room, leaving Gibbs and Keating in the room with Kristina.

Gibbs sat down at the table across from her, a file set on the table before him. He crossed his legs in the normal perpendicular cross fashion, and then crossed his arms over his chest as he looked to the woman.

She looked nervous, despite how casual he looked.

"Sir?"

"How are you and Ensign Jones connected?"

"We're friends. We're in an evening class at the university. When he can't make it due to military reasons, I'll take notes for him."

"Are you two intimate?"

She blushed at the question but shook her head.

"Do you wear make-up, Miss DiNozzo?" he asked her, eying her.

"Sometimes. Mostly it's just if I'm going out on a date or something."

"Were you going on a date with Ensign Jones?"

"No Sir. We were going to go to a fast food place. It's where we always go."

"Why?"

"It's one that never closes. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in writing papers or studying that we stay there all night."

He nodded. "Were you wearing make-up today?"

"Yes. But I don't see why this is pertinent."

"Ensign Jones had lipstick on his lips."

She looked a bit shocked, "Okay?" she wasn't sure how to follow.

"He wasn't wearing it of his own accord. It was kissed onto him. What shade of lipstick do you wear?"

She told him the type, "it's a generic type, Agent Gibbs. A lot of women wear it."

"Did you wear it today?"

"Yes, but.."

"Why?"

"I had a meeting this morning."

"With whom."

She gave him the name. "One of the curator's at the Museum of Natural History."

"Did you kiss Ensign Jones?"

"No, Sir. I told you. We were friends."

"Apparently friends do a lot these days."

She blushed. He had a good point. "There was nothing sexual about our relationship."

"Why would someone want Jones dead?"

She shrugged, "I don't know, Sir. He was a decent guy. A gentleman with me."

"How long have you known him?"

"8 months, roughly. We met in January. He was in another class."

Gibbs nodded, and stood up.

"Agent Gibbs?"

He looked down to the woman, "Yes?"

"How was Greg killed?"

"Stabbed and poisoned."

She nodded, biting her lip, "thank you for telling me."

"We'll have to search your apartment."

She nodded, "We don't have to tell Dad, do we?"

He shrugged, "Depends if you're innocent or not."

With that, he walked out of the interrogation room.

* * *

Instead of Gibbs coming back to Interrogation, it was Langer's turn. He cockily walked in the room, opting to stand instead of sit down.

She looked to him, wondering what was to happen now.

He put the file before her, opening it up to show several pictures, "Know what this is?"

"No, why don't you inform me," she said drily. She didn't like this man one bit.

"Evidence that says you killed this man."

"Oh. Do continue. How does this say that?"

He pointed to the first picture that show a knife under UV lighting. The blade had evidence of blood on it. He then pointed to a second photo which had blood on a paper towel. Lastly it was her lipstick.

"Have you run DNA on the blood?" she questioned.

"It's currently running. But we both know whose blood it is."

"Do we now?"

He nodded, "It's Jones' blood! We got your fingerprints off the handle. Now, we can do this the easy way, and you just write a statement and maybe you'll get off with only 15 years for manslaughter."

"Or." She said. "You can stop trying to make me incriminate myself and wait for the blood results to come back. That knife was in my sink drainer." She then held up her hand, where a finger was stitched, "I cut myself on it a week ago when I was slicing vegetables. The tip of my finger was hanging on by a sinew. You can ask Abby. I called her from the hospital." She then moved her leg to where it was visible, pulling up her jeans pant leg, "I cut myself shaving this morning. There's your bloody paper towel."

He looked to her, annoyed. Perhaps he did jump the gun a bit. But he knew she did it. Daughter of a federal agent or not. "And the lipstick?"

"Yes, I wore it today."

"You were at the scene of the crime right before Jones was killed. Put two and two together."

She glared at the man, feeling her temper rise. "I didn't kill him! I don't know who did! He was alive when I was there!"

Langer just smirked and walked out of the room.

She started pacing the length of the room, quite angry.

* * *

Gibbs came back in half an hour later. She was still angry and still pacing, and just gave him a dirty look."You're free to leave," he said, standing in the door way.

"Am I to be brought back tomorrow for more unjust interrogating?" she asked bitterly.

"No. If we have any more questions, we'll let you know. But for now, you're clean."

She looked to him, "You believe me right?"

He shrugged noncommittally, "I believe the evidence."

"What's it say?"

"Your hair was found on Jones. Lipstick that matched your shade was on him. And you were the last to see him alive."

"What about the DNA from the blood? And the lipstick? I wasn't the last to see him alive, the killer was."

He nodded, she was correct to an extent. "We're waiting for everything to come through. But you're free to go for now. We'll be in touch."

She scoffed, "How am I to get home?"

"Cab?"

She shrugged, "Sorry for being edgy," she apologized as she headed out of the room. Sometimes she acted like a petulant child than an adult. But everyone had their moment.

He nodded, "I don't blame you. Take care of yourself."

* * *

Two weeks later and she had been called into NCIS twice, thankfully the last of the two dates saw the actual culprit being taken away. After sitting in interrogation, she was grateful to be allowed to go up to the bullpen, celebrating her evidence-based innocence. That, and the killer was found out. Turns out, he had an ex-girlfriend who wasn't thrilled with him being friends with other women. Ah, nothing says love better than stalking and framing people for murder.

She looked around the bullpen, seeing it so empty. She hadn't caught wind of what happened between Langer and Lee. "McGee!" she said happily, "I'm surprised to see you here."

"I can return the sentiment. I heard that your life of crime is over."

She rolled her eyes, "Are you being transferred back?"

He nodded, "Ziva too," he said, pointing to the elevator where Agent Michelle Lee was waiting with a box in her hands. When the doors opened, Ziva stepped out as Lee stepped in.

Abby ran up to Ziva and hugged her, "I'm so glad to see you!" she said excitedly.

"It is good to be back." she said, hugging her back, and then walked over to her desk, seeing McGee standing at his desk, and Kristina leaning on Tony's.

"McGee. You look well," she said to him, smiling all the while.

"You do too, Ziva. Glad to have you back."

The woman looked somewhat startled to see Kristina there, but merely mentally shrugged it off, "I am surprised to see you here Allison."

"Well, I heard you were back in the neighborhood and I couldn't miss out on the festivities," she said and hugged the slightly older woman, "I'm glad you're back. There are just some things I can't talk about with Abby."

Ziva nodded, hugging her back, "Alright. But why are you here?"

Kristina waved it off, "someone tried to frame me for murder, you know how it goes..." she said with a shrug. While outside she played it off, inside it nearly killed her. She had never undergone so much before. It made it twice as hard with Tony not being there, and oblivious to everything that went on.

"Right. We will talk later, yes?"

Kristina nodded, "I best be off. It was nice seeing you all," she said and disappeared with a wave through the same elevator that Lee had left on. At least things were slowly getting back to normal. All they needed was Tony home.

* * *

Tony purposely hadn't informed his daughter of his arrival home. He knew that any setbacks would be hard on her. Besides, she liked surprises. Or at least he told himself that. It was 8 o'clock in the evening before he left headquarters, after talking for hours with his teammates, of whom he hadn't seen in ages.

On his way home, he stopped for pizza, having not ate himself. He wasn't sure if she had ate, but figured she could eat more if she wanted. Having his hands full, he could only knock on the door once he arrived home, hoping his child was in.

He put on his biggest smile as she opened the door, a bit in shock as she saw who was standing before her. "You're not supposed to be here!" she exclaimed, finally moving out of the way to let him in.

"Surprise, baby girl! I'm home! For good!" He said happily, setting the pizza on the bar, before going to hug his daughter. "What's new in your world?"

She wrapped her arms around him, "Way too much. Bring the pizza to the coffee table. It's a long story," she said, tugging his hand towards the couch.

It had been a long four months since he heard his daughter's voice and couldn't wait to hear everything. He missed everything about her, even her annoying habits. He didn't know how military personnel could go away for such long times. It was something that made him respect them even more so. He kicked off his shoes and settled on the couch as his daughter started talking, eating and listening, speaking when needed. But he was just grateful to be home.


	8. Chapter 8

**DISCLAIMER**: Still not mine

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Still playing the game from last chapter. But at least I'm not making you wait until Friday, even though I may or may not be on Friday (traveling). But don't worry, once she comes back, I'll update the stories so they are properly editted. I just hope I don't kill my readers with too many commas.

I know this is a Tony/Kristina fic, and last chapter I strayed; but I strayed a little this time, but it wrapped up nice and neat, which I am glad for. This chapter didn't come out as I intended, but what can you do?

Oh. You guys are going to hate me because Chapters 9, 10, and 11 are part of a three section arc (that litterally just got wrote). It's filled with drama too. So, I decided to win you all with this before I make everyone hate me with a cliffhanger in Chapter 9. Oh. And I'll update chapter 9 probably tomorrow afternoon, however... I'm not sure when on Saturday I'll update chapter ten. - evil laugh -

But in other fic news, I have chapters up to 13 wrote.

I love you all. Happy readings!

* * *

December 2008

There was nothing more beautiful than Washington DC at Christmas; with the way the snow covered the ground and the lights twinkled in windows, it was hard not to fall in love with the season. It was a time for family and friends to gather around, to put aside differences for at least one day.

But as Christmas was still two weeks away, the overall Christmas spirit hadn't settled over everyone; so people were grumpy as they trudged through the snow. However, there were still two people who were enjoying each others presence as they stomped the snow off their boots at the entrance to the mall.

"Thanks for coming, Ziva. But you didn't have to come out in such horrid weather."

The other woman shook her head, and stepping into the warmth of the building, "Nonsense. Shopping is fun. Besides, what else would I be doing on a Saturday? Also, I enjoy being with a friend." It was true, since Ziva's arrival back from Israel the two had grown closer. It helped that they were only 6 years apart in age. While they had always chatted via e-mail, now they saw each other more.

Kristina smiled, "Good. Because I haven't a clue as to what to get my dad for Christmas. Has he mentioned anything in passing?"

Ziva thought about it, walking slowly past some shops, "Not that I know of. How about movies?"

She made a face, "Everyone gets him movies. I want this to be different. Y'know... special."

"I understand. Is there something you two have in common?"

"Ziva. We have mostly everything in common."

"Well. Is there anything special that stands out. What is it he calls you... Scott?"

"Scout. But he already has that movie on DVD, and we have a copy of the book."

"What about a first edition printing of the book?"

She shrugged, "Perhaps. But that still doesn't stand out in my mind." She said and walked along. "How does Chanukah work?"

Ziva was a bit caught off guard at her question, "Well. You know the basic principles, right? It's the Festival of Lights?"

Kristina nodded, "But I meant on a personal level. How did you celebrate Chanukah as a child?"

Ziva smiled, "Well. At dusk, on the twenty fifth of Kislev, we would go to temple. After service, we would go back home to light the menorah. Papa wouldn't work those nights. It is actually a minor holiday, but with the way you see things," she gestured to the shops around them, "they act like it is major. Do not misunderstand me, it is an important holiday. The history behind it is very important. But it is not Christmas. We do not exchange gifts with everyone, like you do with Christmas. Usually, just children get gifts."

"Did you get gifts as a child?"

Ziva nodded. "Sometimes. Giving gifts to children is a way to not make them feel left out with all the Christmas gift giving that occurs simultaneously, most years. Do you not think it would not be difficult to watch friends talk about presents, and you not receive any?"

"Good point."

"But I did not have many friends who were Christian, so it did not pose too much of a problem. But overall, my Chanukahs were very pleasant times. Papa was home more."

Kristina nodded. "It sounds like a fun time."

"It is. Just like Christmas is."

"Is it hard to work on Chanukah?"

"Not really. I am not that strict a Jew, I am sad to say."

Kristina walked along, "I hate it when Dad has to work on Christmas."

"He worked a lot of Christmases?"

"Not too terribly many, but it makes me sad he's not around."

Ziva nodded, "Perhaps this year will be different."

"I hope so."

Several hours later, the two finished scouring the mall, having found gifts for everyone else. Kristina groaned irritated, "It never takes this long to find a gift for Dad."

"Well perhaps that is your problem. Stop looking and something will come up."

"Maybe. Feel like doing this again next Saturday?"

She nodded, "Unless we have a case, I would love too."

"Alright. Thanks for coming with this week. Want to get something to eat before we head our separate ways?"

"Alright. How about subs?"

"Sounds good to me."

The following week found them with the same problem. Kristina still hadn't found anything for Tony and Christmas was just days ahead.

To make matters worse, a new case was opened on December 23rd.

Tony groaned at the thought of working another Christmas.

"Missing a hot date, Tony?" Ziva teased him, as they worked late on the 23rd.

He just gave her a dirty look. "No. I may have had plans. It is Christmas, Ziva."

"I know what it is. But you sulking is not going to solve this case any faster."

He glared at her and went back to work.

* * *

It was the same thing the following day; Christmas Eve. Everyone was working late, and no one would be going home early, except for Abby and Ducky.

Abby had bounded into the bullpen, hugging her friends.

"I thought you would have left by now, Abs." Tony said to the woman, "It is late, after all."

She shrugged, "I won't be sleeping anyways. It sucks you guys have a case."

"Tell me about it." Tony said to her, still annoyed he couldn't be spending time with Kristina. "Listen. Stop by my place. Pick up Allison. I don't want her to be alone all night. It's bad enough she spent all day by herself."

Abby nodded, "I'll drag her to service with me. Don't worry Tony. She understands your job."

"I know. Doesn't make it easier."

* * *

Tony groaned when he felt someone shaking him an hour earlier than what he normally woke up. "Kristina. What?" he mumbled out.

"Daddy. It's Christmas!"

"Yeah. And I have to be at work in two hours." He said and rolled over onto his stomach.

"No Sir." She said and sat on his bed. "We are spending time together this morning. So wake up. I'm making breakfast. Unless sleep is more important than your only child on a holiday that's meant for families." She then headed out of the room.

Tony groaned once more, and slowly got up, making his way towards their kitchen. "It's only five in the morning."

"Yes. Well. Don't blame me. If people would stop killing one another, maybe you could have had today off."

He nodded, and went over to their small tree. Once she had turned 18, they had agreed to getting the other just one gift. Of course, neither one listened.

Kristina's shopping hadn't finished until the day prior, but she finally found the perfect gift for him: a glass photo frame with a picture of the two on one side, with the words 'My dad, my hero' on the other. Oh sure, they had a few pictures together, but none had been framed and put up. Besides, what conveyed her feelings better than those simple four words.

She had also went along with Ziva's idea of the first edition printing of To Kill A Mockingbird. It was 'their' book after all. Those were the two most important gifts she gave him, the rest being just trivial things in her mind. She just hoped he liked them.

Apparently, Tony had been feeling sentimental this holiday season, as he had gotten her one of the Willow Tree Collections figures of a dad and a daughter. He had felt a little odd buying it, but knew it would make her happy. And even though he was still trying to wake up as he opened her gifts, his heart practically melted at the picture. He had never considered himself her hero, but he wouldn't deny it now.

After the gifts were opened he leaned over to hug her, "Your presents were the best ever. Thanks, Scout."

She smiled up at her father, and went to go check on the breakfast after returning his hug. "I hate that you have to work today."

"Me too. I would love to spend all day watching movies, but I can't. Will you be okay?"

She half nodded and half shrugged, "Yeah. I'll be okay. Don't worry." Starting to dish out the breakfast foods.

* * *

Soon enough it was time for Tony to go to work. He quickly showered and got dressed, and on his way out he stopped to hug her, kissing her forehead. "Merry Christmas, little girl. I love you."

She smiled and hugged him back. "Merry Christmas, Daddy. I love you too. Stay safe."

* * *

Hours later she was receiving a call from her father telling her to come to headquarters. She was confused, but none the less she responded saying she'd be there.

He was waiting for her in the lobby, and led her up to the bullpen. "We decided to have Christmas with our own little family. We're going to watch movies and what not. You good with that?"

She nodded. "Very." She said, and hugged each of the teammates, wishing them a Merry Christmas. "Where's Gibbs?"

Abby answered her. "Oh. You know Gibbs. He just disappears and pops up out of no where. He'll be back. Don't worry."

She nodded and sat next to her father. It may not have been the best Christmas they ever spent together, but it was better than not seeing him at all on Christmas day.


	9. Chapter 9

**DISCLAIMER**: Am I still needing this?

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Here we are. Chapter Nine. Like I said in Chapter Eight, I'm taking a different path today. I think it came out well though. Tell me what you think.

OH MY GOD. I AM SO TERRIBLY SORRY FOR THIS BEING SO LATE! I will make it up to y'all by posting chapter ten tomorrow after work, theoretically. Please forgive me. I have been traveling all day and I start work in the morning. I haven't found a routine yet.

* * *

Tony DiNozzo had "one of those days" that didn't seem to end. He had forgotten things, dropped things, and his mouth seemed to be running without his brain. He didn't know how many times Gibbs had slapped him, and didn't even bother counting all the glares he got from Ziva and McGee. He even set off Abby's temper, which was a feat in itself. All in all, he just wanted to be home and unwind. Perhaps even spend some time with his kid if she wanted to. Yeah, a nice relaxing evening. He knew he should be so lucky. The moment he stepped into the apartment he knew something was off.

He didn't see Kristina anywhere about, so he just went to his room to take a shower. He surfaced twenty minutes later, feeling a little bit better. Again, his gut told him something was off. Her bedroom door was closed, but that wasn't all that unusual. He knocked gently, but didn't hear anything come from inside. He walked towards the kitchen to see if she had gone out and left a note; but he didn't have far to look.

His daughter was sitting at their bar, her head resting on her arm as she gazed up at the ceiling. He cleared his throat and she sat up, staring at him, "hey Dad." She said softly, going back to her position.

"What's on your mind?" he asked, trying to find something for supper in the kitchen.

"I made spaghetti," she said, this time not looking at him. "Nothing's on my mind."

He looked at her, an unconvinced expression on his face. "Bull. What's wrong?"

She shrugged, "Nothing. Just... out of it."

He sighed, not pressing it. She'd talk when she was ready. Getting a plate out of the cupboard, he called out a question, "Good day?" he asked, loading up his plate. He then snagged a couple pieces of garlic bread from the tray, setting 'the goods' across from her as he got something to drink.

"It was alright."

"Did you eat?"

"A bit. Not feeling hungry much tonight."

He nodded. "As long as you ate something. The team says 'hi', by the way."

She nodded this time. "Tell them I say 'hey' right back."

"I'll pass along the message," he said and started eating.

She stayed quiet as he ate, content to being with her thoughts. "Daddy?" she asked.

He glanced up to her, wiping his mouth. "Yeah?"

"Am I a screw-up?" she asked him, looking at him this time.

He took a quick drink of his soda, quite perplexed by her question. "What? No. What gave you that idea?" he asked.

She sighed and pushed a letter in it's envelope towards him.

He knew immediately that this wasn't going to be good. He took out the letter, setting the envelope down after seeing who it was from. Her mother. This was definitely not good. He started reading over the letter, his face growing darker and darker as he read. This one letter made his day at work seem like a day at Disney World. He got up from his stool and went around to her, moving her to the couch. He gently maneuvered them to sit on the sofa, his arms going around her as he held her close. "I'm sorry you had to read that, baby."

She finally broke down in tears. "Why does she have to be like that?"

He didn't know another way to answer, "Because your mother is a bitch."

"I never did anything to her!"

"I know. I know. You're nothing what she said. You're the complete opposite. You're a gorgeous girl, you're brilliant."

"Why can't she like me?"

"I'm sure she does... somewhere. There's no excuse for what she wrote. Besides the fact she's stupid."

"If she didn't like me, why did she raise me and not you?"

"I couldn't when you were real little. It would have been so hard for me to be an officer and try to keep you safe without having you practically live with neighbors."

"I wouldn't have minded."

"You would have after a while. You wouldn't have saw me a lot. But at least you came to live with me when you did."

She nodded. "I didn't see you a lot as it was."

"I know. And I hated that. You think I wanted you to live with her?"

"She wasn't always bad."

"I know, baby. I know she wasn't. But if it wasn't for her, you wouldn't be here."

She nodded, "Why is she so hurtful?"

"Because she's hurting too."

"Why is she hurting?"

"Because someone hurt her somewhere."

"And she has to take it out on me?"

"I think you were probably just convenient. Or she was trying to get at me."

"By hurting me?"

"She knows that I can ignore her like the best of them, except when it comes to you. She knows I can't stand to see you hurting."

She continued to cry, holding onto Tony. He didn't know what else to do except rub her back as she cried. "She said everything so carelessly."

He nodded. "I guess she thought I'd do a horrible job at raising you."

"But you didn't."

"And I'm thankful for that. Just try to ignore her, Scout."

"Why do I take everything so personally that she says to me?"

He sighed. "Because she's your mom. Kids have this way of taking what their parents say to heart. Whether they want to admit it or not, they do care what their parents think. They want to make them proud."

"You didn't with your dad."

"I did so. Why do you think I went to school and got a good job? I wanted to show him I wasn't a screw up."

"You're not a screw up."

He sighed, wondering if he should say the next thing that came to mind. "He thought I was when you were born. He thought I was stupid for getting involved. He was so sure you weren't mine. But I knew you were. I could see it on your little face. You were mine. No doubt. He wanted me to get a paternity test done anyways. I refused. And once again, he got angry at my decision to be a good father to you. But I showed him that I could balance being a father and still get a decent education and a good job. He still doesn't think what I do is admirable."

"I do." She muttered.

"And I care what you think. Not him. There's not a day that goes by that I'm not proud at what you've accomplished. I mean, look at you. You nearly have your Master's degree. I never went that far."

"If I'm such an amazing person, why am I crying in my daddy's lap?"

"Because you're human. These emotions had to have come out eventually."

For some reason, what he said annoyed her. "I'm tired of these emotions! I don't want them! I want to forget everything about everything!"

"Then do so!" He exclaimed.

She glared at him, "I can't! I've tried! Once again, she's right. I failed!"

He knew what was going on, so he baited her. He had to. "You're right. You failed. Now so what? What are you going to do about it?"

She stared at him, glaring harder. "I don't know what I'm going to do!"

He hated this part, but it had to be done. "So you're just going to sit there and cry and whine like some kid?"

"I said I don't know what I'm going to do!" She was steadily growing angrier

"Fine then. Snivel away. I'll be here when you think you've got your act together. Maybe your mother was right..."

She jumped to her feet. "No she wasn't!" she said, and let her anger peak, throwing a punch at him.

He had anticipated this move. He knew how she worked. She'd get angry for getting upset. She'd get angry at her mom. But that anger wasn't going to sit idle so he knew the best bet was to get her angry at him so she'd lash out, and get that anger out. It worked.

"I think she was. I mean. Come on, look at yourself. She writes you five things and you start sobbing like an infant."

She landed another blow on his chest, "That was the first time," another blow, "in ten years," another, "that she talked to me!" Another blow followed. "Why can't she," another punch, "Just leave me alone!" Another punch soon followed the others, "I hate her!" she said, soon just punching him, the blows growing softer and softer and soon she was back to crying, wrapping her arms around Tony.

He held onto her still, kissing the top of her head, rubbing her back. He hated seeing his daughter in so much pain. The punches didn't bother him so much. He had learned long ago that she was someone who had to physically assert her anger. While this wasn't necessarily a good thing, sometimes it was. He had come home to the apartment nearly sparkling. She kept in shape by running. He knew that cleaning and running wasn't going to remedy this, so he let her hit him.

"Daddy, I don't want her in my life." She cried into the front of his shirt.

"She won't be. I won't let her. Don't worry." He said to her. He felt like this was the toughest job in the world at the moment. And perhaps it was. He looked to their picture he had hung on the wall. He didn't feel like her hero currently.

"Daddy... I love you. I'm glad you're my dad."

For one brief second, he felt on top of the world at her words. "I love you too, Scout. I wouldn't trade you for anything."

He knew that they had a long road before them, but it would be all right in the end. Where ever the end may be. He couldn't give her a happily ever after this time, but he was going to pick up the pieces. He would make sure that her mother paid for the heartache she caused their daughter.

"But there's one more thing..." she said, handling a piece of paper that had been on her lap but had fluttered to the floor. She handed him a piece of paper that had a chart on it. He took it from her, a stony look on his face. It was a paternity test, saying that Tony wasn't Kristina's father.


	10. Chapter 10

**DISCLAIMER**_: _Still not mine

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Apparently, my story isn't as popular as I thought it was. Oh well. At least it's getting hits. BUT YAY WE MADE IT TO TEN! I think I have chapter 14 planned out in my head already. I think I also have to type 13. Hm. Oh well. I'll get on it.

Also, ilovemyjob, ilovemyjob, ilovemyjob. It's not like this is a new job, same from last summer, but oh my word. This is a new crew and it's hard to understand how these people work. I keep trying to tell them this isn't my first rodeo, but they don't hear that. What's amusing is that the dishwasher is like the barber and shoeshine boy, as Tony so elegantly put it, because they do hear everything. People tell me loads of stuff. Yes, amongst all my trades at this job, I'm the dishwasher. :D

I love you all, my readers. Enjoy this chapter.

* * *

_She handed him a piece of paper that had a chart on it. He took it from her, a stony look on his face. It was a paternity test, saying that Tony wasn't Kristina's father. _

* * *

He looked to his daughter, "Wow."

She nodded, looking quite unsure at him.

"When would she have gotten a sample of your blood?"

She shrugged, "I honestly don't know. Maybe from a doctor's office?"

"Well do you know what blood type you are?"

"O negative."

He nodded. He was A positive. "Well. We have a couple options."

She looked to him, "Which are?"

"One. We ignore this and live our lives like we always have. Because I will always be your dad. I helped raised you when you were little, I raised you completely since you were a teen. I'm the one who has argued with you, and comforted you. I've done everything. Besides, I love you more than anything in this world. She can't take you away from me."

She smiled at him. "And your second option?"

"We run our own paternity tests with the mindset that she faked them."

"How could she have faked the results? It's DNA. There's nothing you can do to fake that."

He went over to her, "Oh my naive child." He said, putting his arms around her hugging her, "You've got a lot to learn. What option do you want to take?"

"The second. That way there isn't a nagging doubt."

He nodded, "Alright. But like I said. No matter what the results. I'm still your dad. I've paid enough money for you over the years..." he said teasing her.

She hit him in the stomach. "Not funny."

"Did you see your university bill? I don't think so."

* * *

Three days later, Tony waltzed into Abby's lab. "Hey Abs. I gotta present for you."

She turned to him, "Anything fun?"

His hands were behind his back, he drew up one, it contained a Caf-Pow.

"That's fun," she said taking it from him. "What's in the other hand?"

"A gift from Ducky. Blood work. See if they're related." He said to her with a shrug. "Any way you can expedite?" he asked.

She looked to him, "Why?"

"We're at a critical point in a case, Abby. We need it soon."

She nodded, "I'll try my best. Thanks for the Caf-Pow, Tony. Tell Allison not to be a stranger."

"You know college kids, Abs. Can never catch them."

She rolled her eyes, "Did you make her angry so she's not coming around?"

"No. She's just busy. Last couple months of grad school."

"That's when I did all my partying..."

"Abby. She's studying. Now get on those results!" he said and headed out of the lab.

* * *

A week later, Abby bounded into the bullpen. "Hey guys. I got that blood work back for your case." She said to the three – Ziva, McGee, and Tony – seated at their desks. Tony had been lounging back in his chair and nearly fell over when she said those words.

"I'll take them, Abby!" he said quickly, standing up to retrieve them.

"What case?" Both McGee and Ziva questioned.

"The case Tony said you were at a critical point in." She said, looking at them.

"We have not had a case in almost two weeks, Abby." Ziva said to their forensic scientist.

Abby rounded on Tony. "Tony. Lab. Now." she said simply, walking back towards the elevator that led to her lab.

Tony groaned and followed behind the annoyed scientist. McGee and Ziva exchanged looks and grins before following their co-workers.

When Abby and Tony were finally back in the lab, she shut and locked her main entrance, before glaring at Tony.

"Abs. I'm -."

She held up a hand silencing him. "Sit!" she said, pointing to a stool.

He sat, feeling immensely guilty for not confiding in her.

"What's going on, Tony."

"Nothing. Abs. Why do you ask?"

All of a sudden there were two thumps followed by two groans at her door. She just glared at the door.

"What's Abby rule number one?" she questioned.

"Never lie to Abby." he responded.

"And what did Anthony DiNozzo do?"

"I didn't lie, Abs. I just didn't tell anyone."

"It's the same thing, Tony!" She said with a head slap.

He winced and sighed, "I'm sorry, Abby."

"What's going on, Tony? You've been... edgy since last week. Is Allison okay? Is she sick?"

He shook his head. "She's fine. Healthy."

"Then why the..." The light bulb went off over Abby's head. "Oh my gosh, Tony! I'm so sorry! Why now though? Why not years ago?"

He sighed. Nothing could get past this woman. Which is probably why she was still their scientist. "Allison got a little present in the mail from her mother last week. A not so nice letter. And a paternity test. It said she wasn't mine."

"How'd she get your DNA?"

"Hell if I know." He said, leaning on the table top in front of him.

"You should have come to me with details Tony."

"I know, Abs. A part of me doesn't want to know though. What if she isn't? I know I reassured her that I'll always be her dad, but what if she isn't by blood?"

A thump was heard at the door, "Abby!" Gibbs growled from the other side.

She looked apologetic at Tony, "I gotta open it." She said, doing so. Gibbs walked in, a dirty look on his face, hand over his nose.

"Geez, Abby. Are you trying to kill people with that thing?"

"Why does everyone make a big deal about it?" she said.

He ignored her question. "Ziva and McGee said you locked DiNozzo in here. I wanted to make sure I still had an agent."

She nodded and pointed to Tony, who was staring at the table.

"You okay, DiNozzo?"

"Yeah, Boss. I'll be getting upstairs now."

Abby wanted to blurt out the results but knew she probably shouldn't in front of Gibbs. She quickly thought of a way around Gibbs. "Oh! Tony. Remember me telling you about Sister Rosita's cat, Charlie?"

He looked confused.

"Well, your detective skills paid off. He _was _the father of those kittens." She hoped he got the drift.

"Oh... Oh!" he said his eyes widening, a smile coming onto his face. "That's excellent news, Abs! Like... awesome excellent!" He said, bounding out of the lab.

Gibbs looked to Abby, "What's going on?"

"Nothing you should worry your pretty silver haired head about, Gibbs. Whatcha got for me?"


	11. Chapter 11

**DISCLAIMER**: Still not mine. Boo

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Wow. You all proved me wrong. Thanks! I loved the reviews, you made me giddy. I still love all of my readers, whether you review or not. Enjoy this chapter. This is the last in this little arc. I _really_ need to write out chapter thirteen. Don't worry! I will! Keep reading. Over 7,000 hits on this story. As I said, I love you guys. Alos, I peaked in views yesterday too. At least 1,590.

* * *

It was a week after Tony received the results from Abby that all Hell decided to break loose.

It started as a normal day, Tony going about his normal routine when he got a call from security, saying a woman was looking for him. He didn't think anything about it, saying to send her up, thinking perhaps it was Allison, even though he was sure she was still in bed, having been up all the prior evening.

As soon as the elevator doors opened, he regretted his decision. Ziva saw the angry look cross his face and turned to see who was coming in. All she saw was a pretty woman, mid forties, walking towards Tony.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, a forced politeness in his voice, and a fake smile plastered on his face.

The anonymous woman raised an eyebrow, "What? No hug? Aren't you glad to see me?"

He glared at her. "Why now?"

"I just wanted to see the _alleged_ father of my oldest child." Ziva's – and McGee's – eyes widened when they realized who this woman was.

His jaw hardened, "She is mine. I don't know how you did it. Actually, I do know. I'm surprised _you_ could figure it out."

"What are you talking about? It clearly showed she wasn't yours."

"Yeah. That's not what the blood work said that we had done last week." He said, showing her a piece of paper that he took out from his desk drawer. It clicked with Ziva and McGee what happened in Abby's lab the prior week.

She eyed him, "How do I know that isn't fake? Anyways. I want Allison back."

He glared at her, wanting to do nothing more than punch the woman standing across from him in the face. He wouldn't do that though. He was a federal agent. And she was a woman; some excuse for a woman, but still one none the less. "You can't. She's an adult. Besides, I have full custody of her."

"She's 17! That's not an adult, Tony."

"She's 23!"

The woman looked a bit stunned, but quickly recovered, "17, 23, whatever. I want her to live with me. I'm moving back to the area."

"First, she doesn't want to live with you. And second, she doesn't _need_ to live with you. She's done perfectly fine without you in her life."

"At least let me talk to her."

"No."

"I have the right! I'm her mother!" she said, her voice growing louder to draw attention to the pair. McGee's hand was on his phone to call security while Ziva's hand was on her Sig, ready to take out the woman at the first chance.

"You lost that right when you left her on my door step ten years ago!" he said, standing up. He had been sitting the whole time, his anger finally getting the best of him.

"You _kidnapped_ her from me that weekend she visited!" She hollered.

Tony's face turned red from such allegations, when a voice sounded from the opposite end of the bullpen. "Ziva. Escort this woman out of the building. DiNozzo. With me." Tony stared at his boss before glaring at the woman, whose upper arm was in Ziva's grip. She quickly whipped her arm away from the younger woman as the two left.

Gibbs walked to the men's room, opening the door, seeing as how the elevator was occupied. "In, DiNozzo." Tony obeyed his boss without argument."Talk." he said, when he too entered, locking the door for privacy.

Tony just shook his head, chewing his tongue

"Damnit DiNozzo! Talk!" He said, quite loudly, to the man.

Tony stared at his boss. "That... _thing_ was Allison's mother."

"And why was she here, DiNozzo?"

"I have no earthly idea, Boss."

"Did you tell her to?"

"Hell no! You think I wanted to talk to her when all I've wanted to do for the last ten years is punch her in the face? Do you know how many times Allison has cried because her mother just abandoned her? For the first time in _ten_ years that woman contacted her – via a letter – just two weeks ago. She called Allison names, insulted her, insulted me, everything! She then sent a paternity test saying I wasn't Allison's biological father, which I proved was false."

"Last week in Abby's lab?" Gibbs questioned.

Tony nodded.

"Why is she here?"

"I don't know. Money? She had forgotten how old her own daughter was! Boss – I didn't kidnap Allison."

"Calm down, DiNozzo. I know you didn't."

"I have a paper signed by a judge giving me full custody ten years ago."

"Anthony!" He snapped, getting the younger man's attention. "I know. I'm on your side."

Tony nodded, "What if _she_ tries to kidnap Kristina?"

"Where is Allison now?"

"School. She's in class until," he checked his watch, "half an hour from now."

"Will she connect the dots that Allison is in college?"

"Probably not. She didn't realize she was 23."

"Good. Don't worry, DiNozzo. You've taught your daughter well."

"She can protect herself physically but not emotionally. When it comes to her mother she... breaks, I guess."

Gibbs nodded, "Are you calm?"

Tony nodded.

"Go back to your desk. Stay there. Work. Everything will be fine."

Tony nodded again, taking a deep breath and headed out of the men's room.

Ziva looked to Tony when he returned, "Are you okay, Tony?"

He nodded. "Is she gone?"

It was her turn to nod. "Yes. She may or may not have a sprained wrist though."

He looked to her, "What did you do, Ziva?"

"She tried to strike me. She is lucky she did not end up with a bullet through her skull or her wrist actually broken."

Tony chuckled. "Thanks for having my back, Ziva."


	12. Chapter 12

**DISCLAIMER**: NOT MINE!

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here's twelve. And Tony has a serious 'dad' moment. It's awww-worthy.

July 2009

Tony had to admit that he felt a little brokenhearted at the situation at hand. It wasn't like there was anything wrong, because everything was right in his world. Mostly. Kind of. Better than most. Some. A little bit. Perhaps it was the saying that bad things come in threes that best fit his scenario.

The first incident was the whole Michael Rivkin thing. That ended much worse that he could have ever anticipated. Then, Ziva decided to stay behind in Israel. She had every right to be angry with him, and he knew that. She could have punched him in the face instead of leaving. She was his partner. It was hard trying to fill her place. She was irreplaceable no matter how many women came in to take her position. She was also unforgettable.

But that wasn't his current problem. No, his current problem was packing boxes in her bedroom. His little girl was moving out. He knew this day would come ultimately, but he hadn't expected it so soon. Yes, she was 23, but that was still so young.

He sighed, looking at her; she had grown up way too quickly for his liking. Kristina had graduated with a Masters degree from George Washington University the prior month. And for the last five months she had been interning at the Smithsonian. Her dream job. He thought she was way too intelligent to work at a museum the rest of her life, but that's what she wanted. It was what she studied... Museum Studies. He didn't know how it held her attention, but she loved it; she had always loved History.

It didn't come as much as a surprise when the Smithsonian offered her a full time position, and it paid relatively well; so he knew she would be moving on her own shortly. But why did it have to be now? She could live with him forever for all he cared. She was safe with him.

When she first brought up the idea, he was against it. There was no way his little girl was moving away. She was too young. She was 23. She kept pushing the idea and he finally relented and looked over the brochures she had given him. He immediately cast out all of the options. They weren't safe enough for his liking. This had caused her to give him a dirty look, but she went to find other places.

Finally, she had found a place. The brochure test had passed, and upon Tony's visiting of the apartment, he deemed it safe enough. Although he wouldn't tell her that another NCIS agent lived in the building as well. Some things shouldn't be found out right away. Because he was such a loving, caring father, he co-signed her lease, and for some reason felt his wallet get lighter in the process.

He tried to put off the inevitable furniture buying process; it was to be a house warming present from him and ultimately, the rest of the team chipped in for various items. She insisted on buying her own bedroom suite, but he was allowed to buy her the living room suite. How gracious of her. She was even kind enough to let him and her boyfriend move all the furniture up to her apartment.

The coffee pot, a gift from Gibbs, was then put to use. He had insisted on buying her a pot that ground the beans, that way she could have decent coffee (and that he wouldn't have to suffer through instant if he just so happened to be in the neighborhood). Abby's gift was seen throughout the apartment – photo frames of different varieties; each filled with different memories. McGee's gift was practical – a corner computer desk with a place for the printer, and a bunch of shelves and drawers to hold practically anything. She hadn't received anything from Ziva because she had already left.

Kristina had been upset that Ziva had left so suddenly. She had felt that there was something amiss with the entire situation, but she wasn't privy to details. She was certain that Ziva would be back, or at least hoped so. Even though she didn't see Ziva in person a lot, she kept in regular contact via e-mail, as the older woman had good advice for different situations. Between Ziva and Abby, she had a plethora of womanly advice.

As Kristina walked out of her room, she looked to her father, "You okay, Daddy?" she asked him, sitting next to him on the couch.

He nodded, "Yeah. You all packed?"

"Almost. Still a few things left. Everything should fit in this trip."

He nodded once more, "Alright. Need any help packing?"

She shook her head this time, "I've got it. You just looked so deep in thought."

"I am. Partially."

"About what?" she questioned.

"Nothing in particular. Shall we load up the cars?"

She remained quiet, nodding. She knew that he was sad she was moving out. Hell, so was she. But they couldn't ignore this day forever. She had to leave sooner or later.

Kristina stood up, and gathered a box in her arms, heading for his door, as Tony trailed behind her with box laden arms. "Is Bryan going to help you unpack when he gets off work?" he asked of the girl's boyfriend.

Ah, yes. Boyfriend. The two had only been together six months. That was another step he wasn't looking forward too – marriage – but he was certain that wasn't going to be anytime soon. Thankfully. He wouldn't be able to handle that right now. Tony liked the kid; he was bright, responsible, respectable. He treated Kristina like a queen. He could hold a conversation with anyone – including Gibbs, which the poor boy found out the hard way. He wasn't easily intimidated; but a Marine shouldn't be easily intimidated. However, he was close to it when Tony and Gibbs cornered him when Tony had let it slip at work that he was coming over for dinner. Gibbs was just doing the fatherly thing, of course. Why the rest of the team came with, he hadn't a clue, but the more the merrier.

Even though it hadn't been the first time Tony met him, Kristina still chewed him out for trying to scare him off. No, the first time Tony had met him, the older man had been off work for half an hour and had taken apart his gun to clean it; taking a page out of Ziva's book and cleaning it to relax. Bryan had eyed it as he was carefully interrogated by Tony. Tony had casually expressed that he was a federal agent and had permission to look into anyone's files, and was there anything Bryan wanted to tell him first? For Bryan's sake, he was lucky he was telling the truth when he said he had nothing to hide, that his record was clean. A part of Tony wished the boy was lying.

Gibbs wasn't as gentle as Tony was. He point blank told the young man that if he ever caught word that he had harmed Kristina in anyway, his death would be slow and painful, and very, very, legal. Yes, the man might be a Marine but that wouldn't stop the old Gunnery Sargeant. Once a Marine, always a Marine. The only reason Gibbs acted this way was he never had the chance to do this with Kelly. It was something he had missed out on. And ever since meeting Kristina, he felt it was like a second chance. She was a smart girl who he enjoyed corresponding with. Besides, he didn't want to see her crying like she did after her first year at college.

Kristina looked to her father, "Yeah. He said he would."

Tony nodded, "Alright. Is there still talk about him being transferred?"

She shrugged, "He hasn't mentioned anything."

Tony got quiet once more as he carried the boxes down, and remained quiet the rest of the day.

Tonight was actually her first night at her new apartment, and Tony felt the emptiness of his home. He was always used to hearing some form of noise, that it was strange to be so quiet.

It was getting on to be late in the evening, nearing midnight, when Tony awoke on the couch to a knocking on his front door. Grabbing his SIG from the coffee table, he headed for the door, opening it. What he saw made him smile. It was his little girl, standing in her normal nighttime apparel, a pillow tucked under her arm. He stepped out of the way to let her in, when she spoke.

"I couldn't sleep... is it alright if I stay here tonight?" she asked him, heading for the couch where he had been lying.

"You know you don't have to ask. This is still your home," he said, "You can have my bed."

She shook her head, yawning.

He chuckled and grabbed a blanket from the hall closet, walking back over to the couch, "Want to finish this movie with me?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Ghostbusters." he said, sitting on the couch, not as stretched out as he once was.

She smiled, curling up next to him, "My favorite."

"I know. Where's Bryan?" he asked, an arm going around her.

"He had duty tonight. He said he'd try and stay tomorrow night."

"So will I always have company on duty nights?"

She shook her head, "No... not always."

Tony smiled, and kissed her forehead, "I love you Scout, never change." he said and resumed the movie, feeling her fall asleep against his side not even thirty minutes later.


	13. Chapter 13

**DISCLAIMER**: Not mine

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: My readers are awesome. :D Enjoy chapter 13 of Ab Initio!

* * *

**CHAPTER 13**:

November 2010

Kristina knew this would happen ultimately, but she didn't quite think it would be this particular day. She knew her father was far from innocent, but he hid it very well. Perhaps there was a time when she first came to live with him that he 'took a break' so to speak, but what was stopping him once she got to university? Of course, she didn't think he'd try anything while she lived with him. She was right, to an extent.

It was this particular evening; she actually hadn't planned on visiting her father, it just sort of happened. Bryan had duty that night and she didn't feel like being by herself, so instead of her calling her dad, she'd surprise him. She figured she'd stand the chance of him being at work. If that was the case, she'd order pizza and her surprise would still work.

But imagine her surprise when she opened his door to find her father, Tony DiNozzo, getting rather snuggly on the sofa with a strange dirty-blonde haired woman. She truly had not seen this coming. While she had opened the door quietly, she shut it with great noise, causing Tony to reach for his gun, which was resting on the coffee table.

Tony figured it out quickly enough, but didn't want to ruin their evening anymore. So he'd let this go and talk with his daughter the next day, despite the fact that his mind had went into full blown worried dad mode. He hadn't planned on her finding out like this. Would she hate him?

* * *

Kristina had decided to find temporary solace in another place, although hesitant as she walked up the path. She knocked on the door, and upon hearing no response, called the owner of the house.

"Yeah. Gibbs."

"Ah. Hello, Gibbs. It's Allison DiNozzo. I'm standing outside your front door. May I come in?"

"Yeah. I'm in the basement."

Now that he was expecting her arrival, he made a space for her to sit on an old stool that looked stable in theory.

She carefully made her way down, thankful that the older man didn't shoo her away.

"Allison. What brings you here?"

"Bryan's working tonight. Didn't want to be alone."

"Where's DiNozzo?"

She was wary of answering this question. "He's... Ah... Busy this evening."

"Busy? DiNozzo 'busy' or work busy?" The gray haired man questioned, casting a concerned look to the woman. It wasn't like Tony to just cast off his daughter.

She winced as Gibbs knew of her father's habits, apparently. "DiNozzo busy."

"They grow up fast, don't they?" he asked, now stopping his wood working to sit on a sawhorse. "Bourbon?" he offered, pouring a mason jar for himself.

She shook her head, "No thanks. And you're right. They do grow up fast. I never expected him to see him so different."

Gibbs nodded, "He's not just your dad. Just like he's not just an agent. He's still a male, and human. I take it this has never been an issue before?"

"Never. I wasn't completely naïve in thinking he never dated, but I was never here to witness it. Growing up, when I would visit, it was strictly Dad and I. And when I first lived with him, there was none of that. I assumed that when I went to stay at a friend's house, he may do something, but we just chose not to acknowledge that. I'm pretty sure he was more active in the dating scene once I was at university. But now.. to be honest, he wasn't expecting me. I thought he may be at work. I was wrong."

He listened to her earnestly, nodded as she spoke. "So I don't need to point out the error of your ways..." he muttered with a vague grin on his face, but her crest fallen expression caused it to disappear. "What's the real problem?"

"I'm afraid he'll be mad at me... And there's a part of me that's jealous. I know that it's childish since I'm almost 24, but I liked the little bit of me that thought he didn't date." She admitted, looking at her hands. "And I'm angry at him."

"Why?" Gibbs asked, curious.

"While I know he and my mom would never get together again, another small part wants to see that. A family."

He nodded. "That's understandable, but you still have a family, just because your parents aren't together and it's traditional."

"I know. Dad and I talked about this. Since that time I got sick, he's come to know you guys as family, and so have I. You're more family than my mom and paternal grandparents."

Gibbs nodded. "Tony has been like a son to me, as is McGee. Just like Abby and Ziva are like my daughters. You're like a granddaughter, even if I'm no where near old enough. But back to the task at hand." He said, getting serious again, as during their bonding he had lightened up some. "Anger is normal. It's expected. There is no need for you to worry because you're still your father's sun, moon, and stars. He won't replace you. He cares too much. And I'm sure he won't be angry with you."

She nodded. "I know, but I can't turn off those emotions."

"Well I'll help you forget them." He said and got off the sawhorse, heading back to the boat. "Do you know anything about wood working?"

"Nope."

"Good." He said and started teaching her.

Tony stood anxiously outside his daughter's apartment, knocking finally. When she answered, she didn't say a work, but stepped back to allow him to enter the apartment.

He walked over to the couch, sitting on the arm, while she sat on one of her bar stools. It took Tony a couple minutes before he could say anything. "I'm sorry about last night, Scout."

She merely shrugged. "Don't apologize. You did nothing wrong. I should be apologizing."

She had a valid point, Tony thought, but continued speaking. "Yes, but I should have let you know that I would be busy."

"I should have called. Or knocked."

"We couldn't have anticipated each others moves. So no need arguing the past. We need to talk about the 'what now'."

"Alright. What now, Dad?" she had a slight edge to her voice, but was trying to keep it out.

"Are you comfortable with me dating?"

'That was a stupid question' passed through her mind. "I'll never be comfortable with you dating. Just like you never will be with me."

"True. But do you accept it?"

"I have no real say so."

"Yet again, true. But I respect your opinion. I don't want our relationship to suffer. You're my kid and I love being with you."

"I accept it, but..." she bit her lip, unsure as how to say it without sounding like some spoiled child.

"Go on..." he gently urged.

"I don't want to be ignored. Or lose you. I was talking to Gibbs last night and..."

He couldn't help but interrupt. "You went to Gibbs."

"Yeah."

"About?"

"About you dating."

He decided to let this one go. "Sorry. Go on."

"Well he said you'd never replace me."

"He's right."

"I know he is. But I can't help but feel jealous."

He nodded. "Why don't me, you, and my... friend have dinner together one night." It was hard for him to call the woman a girlfriend. It just sounded so weird to say that word around his daughter. "Maybe that way, you two can get to know each other and she'll be less of a 'threat'." Indeed he used air quotes.

"Alright. I guess. I want to see you happy is all. I do. Really."

"I know you do. But let's just remedy this and watch a flick, 'kay Scout?" he asked, sitting properly on the couch.

She went to the fridge to get a couple drinks and returned, sitting next to her dad. She still felt off inside, but was happier as she handed him a drink. "The Langoliers? Really, Dad?" she asked him, as a cheesy grin crossed his face.

* * *

**CHAPTER 14**:

It had been entirely too long since Kristina had hung out with Ziva, mainly due to schedules. However, after long last, Ziva had called up her friend the prior day, asking if she wanted to meet up at a cafè near NCIS headquarters for lunch, to which Kristina agreed.

Kristina hadn't been waiting long when Ziva appeared, apologizing. "I am terribly sorry for being late. Gibbs was briefing us."

Kristina smiled and nodded. "Not a problem. I haven't been here long. I just ordered a water."

Ziva sat, as she looked over the menu. "Thank you for agreeing to see me. It has been a while since we last got together."

"I know. So much as happened."

"Really? Such as?"

"Okay. Not that much. But I met Dad's new girlfriend."

Ziva nodded. "How did that go? He mentioned you three having a very tense supper."

Kristina couldn't help but laugh. "Tense wasn't the right word. She was very nervous at meeting me, and I didn't want to like her at all."

"And then?"

"She realized I wasn't going to leap across the table and shove a potato down her throat. And I didn't like her at all. But I'll put up with her, for now."

"What is wrong with her that you did not like?"

"She's dating my dad, Ziva. That's what wrong. I mean, she's nice and all. But it's weird to see him.. like he has a school boy crush."

Ziva laughed at her remark. "It is odd to watch him talk about her. But he does like her..."

She just gave her friend a dirty look.

Ziva grinned. "Alright. How are you and your dad working through this? I know he was worried that night; he talked non-stop about it during work the next day."

"We talked it out. It's just... it's different. Dad never had an obvious girlfriend. It's something to get used to, that's all. I'm happy that they got together. He needed a girlfriend or whatever."

Ziva nodded. "That was something that was really important to Tony. He was sure that you were going to kill him slowly and painfully."

Kristina shook her head, "I could never hurt him. Intentionally."

Ziva nodded once more. "In other guy related news, how is Bryan?"

She shrugged. "That is a good question. We have been growing more and more distant here lately. I mean, we're still together. He comes over to my house and stays the night with me, but we never really see each other. I know he's busy with the Marines, but you know... it's odd."

Ziva nodded, understanding. "Do what you feel is best. How do you feel about him?"

"I love him. A lot. More than I thought I would, in all honesty. But it may be that I just like having someone there for safety. I sleep better when he's with me."

"What about when you lived with your dad?"

"What do you mean?"

"Did you sleep well when you lived with Tony."

She nodded. "Of course. I knew he would protect me no matter what happened."

"So you're with Bryan for that protection?"

"I guess. I haven't talked with him about it. I know I should."

Ziva nodded, "You really need to. It's not good to drag out something that won't last."

"But I do love him, but I guess I'm not truly in love with him."

"Were you ever?"

"Good question. I didn't 'fall out of love' with him, but he may not be the one for me after all. We've just become the best of friends. I talk to him about everything, and so does he with me. But.. something is missing. We're like roommates, in a way. But he doesn't live there all the time. He just stays some nights."

"So will you break up with him?"

"Perhaps. I think it may have already happened, we just have not said anything because we're just so content with each other."

"Relationships these days are so... odd." Ziva mentioned off hand, to which Kristina agreed with wholeheartedly.

"Ziva. I hate to change the subject, but let me ask you something."

"Go on."

"My dad is different, when I'm not around, isn't he?"

She nodded. "Not much though. He just has two, or perhaps more, roles. With you, he is your dad, your protector. At work, he is an agent, and only rarely does that 'dad role' break through."

"I just can't picture him outside being my dad. I barely see him as an agent."

"Just imagine seeing him from the opposite end. To see him being paternal is something odd. I know we know he's a father, but to see him being a father is odd. You have come to headquarters a couple times, but no one has really seen him in full blown dad mode. The only time we had a hint was when we thought he had died."

"He doesn't seem the paternal type normally, does he?"

"No. He plays jokes on people and acts immature. Not to mention he flirts with everything."

That was a surprising thought. She hadn't expected her father to be such a flirt. Of course, she never tried picturing him that. He was just permanently in a dad mode to her. "I would have never guessed. Of course, I suppose that's why Agent Todd asked if I was a girlfriend the first time I met her."

Ziva looked to her. "She asked you if you were his girlfriend?"

She nodded. "I had just come back from school unexpectedly. It was my first time to NCIS too. I had gotten locked out of Dad's place."

She chuckled. "I cannot say I blame her. It was a shock to meet you the first time."

"Imagine how Gibbs, Abby, and Ducky felt when they showed up at Dad's and I was there. Of course, I was barely conscious at the time and therefore I don't remember it."

"I can not picture them being speechless. And for Abby and Ducky to be speechless..."

"I know. I know." Kristina said to her, nodding. "I wish I could see Dad from a different angle. But that will never happen."

"Perhaps one day you will." Ziva said and checked her watch. "I have to get back to work. Shall we meet up again?"

"Lunch next week?"

"It sounds excellent."

Kristina nodded. "Alright. Send him my love, please. I enjoyed chatting with you, Ziva. I'm glad we're friends."

Ziva nodded. "As am I." She then stood, hugged the woman and departed.


	14. Chapter 14

**DISCLAIMER**: Not mine

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Over 11,000 hits you guys! You make me so proud to be an author. Yesterday had the most hits with at least 1,600 hits. Man. I don't know what I would do without readers like you.

I figured this is a nice little filler chapter. Chapter 16 is finished and oh is it good. I mean, I think it is one of my favorite chapters so far. Today I'll probably start on Chapter 3 of ISWM and work on chapter 17. Who knows. Additional ideas are welcome. I take to heart what is said.

Thank you for reading, lads and lasses!

* * *

December 2010

The night had been a rainy one, causing her overall attitude to be slightly down. But Kristina quickly sucked it up and planned on going to bed. It wasn't too late... around 11 in the evening, and even though she didn't have to get up early for work, she hadn't had a good day.

Before she went to bed, she showered and changed into her night apparel: short shorts and a tank top. A part of her wished she hadn't had broken up with Bryan just a few weeks prior, but she didn't miss him as much as she thought. It was at night when the silence consumed her that she missed him. She had just finished brushing her hair when a loud crash sounded from her living room.

She kept a baseball bat in almost every room, the one in her bedroom resting by the door. She quickly grabbed it, heading towards the sound of the noise. She had two locks on the front door and apparently someone had broken through the first one. When the intruder broke through the second, causing the door to fly open, she let loose with a full swing, hitting the person on the side of the head. The quickly fell to the floor, and she raced for her phone.

The first person she called was her father.

"Yeah?" he asked into the phone, wondering why his daughter was calling so late.

"Daddy. Someone just tried to break in. I hit them in the head with a baseball bat." Panic was evident in her voice.

He got quiet. "Are you alright? Have you called the police? Call them. I'll be there shortly." He said and hung up so she could call.

Tony had never believed this would happen in this apartment building. This was why he wanted her to move there. It was a safe place. He dialed the number of the agent who lived in the building, sending them up to investigate.

* * *

Tim was surprised to hear from Tony so late at night, but once he learned of the situation, he hurried up to the apartment, which was one floor above his. His badge was on his hip and his gun was drawn as he entered the apartment, carefully noting another door on her floor that looked like it had been kicked in.

"Allison?" he called, looking cautiously about the living room.

She appeared from the kitchen, still holding onto the bat. "McGee? Why are you here?"

"Your dad called..."

She eyed him. "You live here?"

He nodded.

She didn't have time to get angry at her dad as the guy who she hit started coming around. "McGee!" she said and pointed.

He quickly turned and went over to the guy. He rolled him onto his stomach and cuffed him, leaving him lying on the floor. "What happened?"

It occurred to her what she was wearing and blushed, grabbing an OSU jacket from off the couch, putting it on. "Well. I had just gotten out the shower and I heard a loud noise. I grabbed a bat, came out, and saw him trying to break in."

He nodded. "Right. I saw another door broke in. Stay here. I'll be back."

She nodded, sitting on the couch. She was in beyond panic mode and was unreasonably calm. It was another ten minutes before the cops arrived, but they got stopped by McGee and Tony at the other apartment. Apparently there was a body at the place that warranted NCIS.

The paramedics came into her apartment to take away the guy, one talking to her about what happened, and making sure she was alright. The police followed, taking her statement. She quickly explained what happened, looking for Tony. He still hadn't shown up at her apartment.

It was another ten minutes before he did, hurrying over to her. "I'm so sorry Scout. I sent McGee here but..."

Kristina looked to him. "He was here, Dad. What's going on?"

"There's a body at the other apartment. Our main suspect is the guy who tried to break into your apartment."

She nodded and hugged him. "Are you working?"

He hugged her back. "Not now. Ducky is taking the body back to headquarters tonight, and Gibbs, McGee, and Ziva are looking for evidence. I'm clear for right now."

"Can I stay with you, please?" she asked him.

He nodded. "All right. Why isn't Bryan here?" He obviously was not aware of the situation about the two.

"We broke up, Dad." She said and sat on the couch, putting her head in her hands.

He sat next to her, putting his arms around her. "I'm sorry to hear that. Are you okay?"

She nodded, "Just scared out of my mind, is all."

"I'm glad you're safe."

Kristina nodded, and hugged him again. "What happened at the other place?"

"I don't know yet, Kid."

She sat up quickly. "Did you know that McGee lived here?"

He looked to the floor. "Yeah."

"That's why you wanted me to live here, isn't it?"

He nodded.

"You're a jerk. But thank you. At least he was here briefly."

"Sorry. I needed to know you were alright. I didn't expect this to happen here."

She nodded. "I didn't expect this to happen at all. I mean... what are the odds? And so close to Christmas too..."

"I know. Are you sure you're okay though? I can take you to the hospital."

"Dad. He didn't get any where near me. He was out on the floor before he knew what was happening. I'm fine. Really. I'm just scared right now."

"I know. This won't happen again. I promise you."

"You can't promise that, Daddy."

"Well. I'm going to try my best and make sure you're safe."

"Short of living with you again..."

"You're more than welcome to."

"No. I'm going to have my own place. I really like this building, and I don't want to move. I'm just wondering why my place was chosen."

He shrugged. "We will find out soon enough. Put some pants on and I'll take you home in a little bit. Okay?"

She nodded, heading for her room, trying to ignore the police standing in her front entryway, talking amongst themselves at what happened.

After getting dressed properly, she went over to where Tony's team was standing. She carefully approached the group. "Have you found out what happened?"

They all shook their heads, but Gibbs spoke. "Not yet. That will probably take a few days, or however long it takes for _your_ victim to recover."

She nodded and stepped back, leaving with Tony in the following ten minutes.

* * *

It was almost New Years Eve before the case was solved, and it didn't rest easy with Tony. At least the part involving Kristina. Even though the two cases weren't directly connected, he was still bothered. Apparently, her mother had found out where she lived and paid the man, someone from the streets to go in and bring Kristina to see her. The guy had the wrong apartment number when he burst into the first apartment. He only found the body, not killed the person. It was by luck in his panic that he burst into Kristina's apartment. It was there he had met the wrong end of her baseball bat.

While Kristina chose not to live in fear over the thought that her mother was still trying to get under her skin, her father was. He was worried that the woman would go even further over the line and actually hurt their daughter. However, he couldn't find her. She wasn't in any recent database. It was like she didn't exist. However, he wouldn't breathe easy until she was somewhere where she couldn't bother either of them.

Which was why Tony had propositioned Jimmy Palmer to be his daughter's date (a ruse, Tony thought. She needed someone keeping an eye on her) for New Year's Eve. The younger man stammered as he thought about it. "She has to like someone to go out with them, Tony."

Tony looked to the male. "Trust me. She'll be interested. Don't worry." Because Tony wasn't worried. He knew it would go without a hitch.

* * *

Tony was wrong. Big surprise there. He had convinced his daughter to go out with Jimmy and the pair had left with a quiet threat from Tony: "Keep her safe."

This caused the younger man to panic ever so slightly. It caused the younger man to panic just a little bit more when his date disappeared shortly after one in the morning.

He called up the most logical solution right after he noticed she was gone: McGee. He knew if he called either Gibbs, Tony, or even Ducky, his life and job would be on the line. He couldn't risk his job, he loved it way too much.

McGee sounded slightly groggy as he received the call. "Hello?"

"McGee! Thank God you're awake! I have a problem."

"What is it, Jimmy?" he asked, waking up.

"Oh... you were asleep? I'm sorry. But I lost Tony's daughter."

Tim had only been asleep about 15 minutes before Jimmy called him. "How did you lose her? And what are you doing out with her?"

"I don't know how I lost her. And we went out for New Year's."

"Alright. Calm down. Where are you now?"

"The National Mall."

"Alright. How long have you been there?" He was now getting dressed.

"Since 10 o'clock tonight. There was an employee New Year's party at the museum where she works."

"Alright. Meet me at the Navy Yard."

"But... what if she's in a ditch somewhere nearby?"

"What if she is at home?" McGee asked.

"Alright. We're agreed to not tell anyone?" Jimmy asked.

McGee chuckled. "Sure. Why not."

* * *

Fifteen minutes later the two men met up at headquarters, Tim looking quite tired as he booted up his computer and Jimmy looking quite frazzled. "You did try calling her phone, right?" McGee asked him.

Jimmy nodded. "Several times. No answer."

"Alright." He said. "What's her number?"

Jimmy relayed the number after looking it up in his phone, pacing in front of McGee's desk.

"She's at... " he told the address, looking to Jimmy. "Is that her address?"

Jimmy shrugged. "I picked her up from Tony's apartment."

McGee sighed as he pulled up her driver's license, the addresses didn't match. He then frowned, looking at Jimmy.

"Please?" The younger man asked, without having to ask much else.

McGee sighed again as he shut down his computer. "Let's go, autopsy gremlin." He muttered, using Tony's nickname for the man.

Jimmy followed McGee out of the building and to his car, getting in the passenger side, still nervous. "Think Tony will kill me?"

"Only if she's dead."

Jimmy swallowed hard as McGee drove.

* * *

They arrived in front of the apartment building twenty minutes later, parking in the first available spot. McGee got out, looking up, and put his hand on his holster, just to be on the safe side. The pair walked into the building and into the elevator, pressing the designated floor.

McGee wasn't sure how Tony would react if his daughter really was hurt and no one bothered to include him in the man hunt. He was sure Tony would kill the pair. And probably enlist Gibbs to help.

Jimmy's thoughts were along the same lines as McGee's, but was smart enough not to voice them anymore. He continued to have positive thoughts about it all.

As they reached the door, McGee knocked, hand back on his gun. It took a few minutes before the door opened, revealing a male around 26. His eyes widened at the pair. "Uhm. Hello?" he asked.

"NCIS." McGee said simply. "But we're looking for Allison DiNozzo."

The man nodded. "Please come in." He said to them, opening the door wider to allow them entrance.

Jimmy and McGee both exchanged looks. "Who are you, exactly?" Tim asked.

"Bryan Owens. There she is." He said pointing to the couch where Allison was asleep. The dress she was wearing barely seemed to cover anything as she slept, which was why Bryan had tossed a blanket over her, but she was a rough sleeper, so it was wrapped around her.

McGee gave Jimmy a dirty look. "Why is she here?"

The man shrugged. "She just showed up. I got off duty right before she arrived."

"And you don't know why?"

"She just said she needed a place to crash and my address was the first she thought of."

McGee nodded. "I'll take her back home now."

"It's no trouble if she stays."

"Oh. I'm sure there will be if she does."

"Mr. DiNozzo won't mind. She's safe here."

"Well... Jimmy here was in charge of keeping her safe tonight." Tim said pointing to Jimmy, who grinning weakly.

Bryan gave Jimmy a dirty look. "Clearly you don't know Allison very well. Or else you would have done a better job on keeping tabs on her when she's been drinking. Didn't you know that if she has been drinking and says she's tired, she will leave no matter what?"

Jimmy shook his head. "That much was never explained to me. I know now though."

Bryan stared at the man, guessing he wasn't much older than himself. "What exactly was going on when she left?"

Palmer blushed. "What happened isn't important. What's important is getting her home safely." He said, confidence in his voice, finally.

Bryan looked at the pair. "Alright. I'll let her go with you two. You know where she lives?"

McGee nodded. "She lives in my building." He hadn't thought of that until just then. He could have went and knocked on her door to see if she was home. Good thing he didn't.

Bryan nodded. "Alright. Drive safely." he said and went to wake her up, which wasn't an easy task.

* * *

Nearly an hour later, McGee had dropped Jimmy off to get his car from the Navy Yard and brought Allison back to their building. She didn't put up much of a fight getting up to her door, although she had trouble getting the key in the lock, to which McGee aided her.

She smiled sleepily, and perhaps a bit drunk-like at him, before kissing him lightly. "Happy New Year, McGee!" she said and shut the door in his face, leaving him wondering what had just happened.


	15. Chapter 15

**DISCLAIMER**: Not mine

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Over 11,000 hits you guys! You make me so proud to be an author. Yesterday had the most hits with at least 1,600 hits. Man. I don't know what I would do without readers like you.

I figured this is a nice little filler chapter. Chapter 16 is finished and oh is it good. I mean, I think it is one of my favorite chapters so far. Today I'll probably start on Chapter 3 of ISWM and work on chapter 17. Who knows. Additional ideas are welcome. I take to heart what is said.

Thank you for reading, lads and lasses!

* * *

December 2010

The night had been a rainy one, causing her overall attitude to be slightly down. But Kristina quickly sucked it up and planned on going to bed. It wasn't too late... around 11 in the evening, and even though she didn't have to get up early for work, she hadn't had a good day.

Before she went to bed, she showered and changed into her night apparel: short shorts and a tank top. A part of her wished she hadn't had broken up with Bryan just a few weeks prior, but she didn't miss him as much as she thought. It was at night when the silence consumed her that she missed him. She had just finished brushing her hair when a loud crash sounded from her living room.

She kept a baseball bat in almost every room, the one in her bedroom resting by the door. She quickly grabbed it, heading towards the sound of the noise. She had two locks on the front door and apparently someone had broken through the first one. When the intruder broke through the second, causing the door to fly open, she let loose with a full swing, hitting the person on the side of the head. The man quickly fell to the floor, and she raced for her phone.

The first person she called was her father.

"Yeah?" he asked into the phone, wondering why his daughter was calling so late.

"Daddy. Someone just tried to break in. I hit them in the head with a baseball bat." Panic was evident in her voice.

He got quiet. "Are you alright? Have you called the police? Call them. I'll be there shortly." He said and hung up so she could call.

Tony had never believed this would happen in this apartment building. This was why he wanted her to move there. It was a safe place. He dialed the number of the agent who lived in the building, sending them up to investigate.

* * *

Tim was surprised to hear from Tony so late at night, but once he learned of the situation, he hurried up to the apartment, which was one floor above his. His badge was on his hip and his gun was drawn as he entered the apartment, carefully noting another door on her floor that looked like it had been kicked in.

"Allison?" he called, looking cautiously about the living room.

She appeared from the kitchen, still holding onto the bat. "McGee? Why are you here?"

"Your dad called..."

She eyed him. "You live here?"

He nodded.

She didn't have time to get angry at her dad as the guy who she hit started coming around. "McGee!" she said and pointed.

He quickly turned and went over to the guy. He rolled him onto his stomach and cuffed him, leaving him lying on the floor. "What happened?"

It occurred to her what she was wearing and blushed, grabbing an OSU jacket from off the couch, putting it on. "Well. I had just gotten out the shower and I heard a loud noise. I grabbed a bat, came out, and saw him trying to break in."

He nodded. "Right. I saw another door broke in. Stay here. I'll be back."

She nodded, sitting on the couch. She was in beyond panic mode and was unreasonably calm. It was another ten minutes before the cops arrived, but they got stopped by McGee and Tony at the other apartment. Apparently there was a body at the place that warranted NCIS.

The paramedics came into her apartment to take away the guy, one talking to her about what happened, and making sure she was alright. The police followed, taking her statement. She quickly explained what happened, looking for Tony. He still hadn't shown up at her apartment.

It was another ten minutes before he did, hurrying over to her. "I'm so sorry Scout. I sent McGee here but..."

Kristina looked to him. "He was here, Dad. What's going on?"

"There's a body at the other apartment. Our main suspect is the guy who tried to break into your apartment."

She nodded and hugged him. "Are you working?"

He hugged her back. "Not now. Ducky is taking the body back to headquarters tonight, and Gibbs, McGee, and Ziva are looking for evidence. I'm clear for right now."

"Can I stay with you, please?" she asked him.

He nodded. "All right. Why isn't Bryan here?" He obviously was not aware of the situation about the two.

"We broke up, Dad." She said and sat on the couch, putting her head in her hands.

He sat next to her, putting his arms around her. "I'm sorry to hear that. Are you okay?"

She nodded, "Just scared out of my mind, is all."

"I'm glad you're safe."

Kristina nodded, and hugged him again. "What happened at the other place?"

"I don't know yet, Kid."

She sat up quickly. "Did you know that McGee lived here?"

He looked to the floor. "Yeah."

"That's why you wanted me to live here, isn't it?"

He nodded.

"You're a jerk. But thank you. At least he was here briefly."

"Sorry. I needed to know you were alright. I didn't expect this to happen here."

She nodded. "I didn't expect this to happen at all. I mean... what are the odds? And so close to Christmas too..."

"I know. Are you sure you're okay though? I can take you to the hospital."

"Dad. He didn't get any where near me. He was out on the floor before he knew what was happening. I'm fine. Really. I'm just scared right now."

"I know. This won't happen again. I promise you."

"You can't promise that, Daddy."

"Well. I'm going to try my best and make sure you're safe."

"Short of living with you again..."

"You're more than welcome to."

"No. I'm going to have my own place. I really like this building, and I don't want to move. I'm just wondering why my place was chosen."

He shrugged. "We will find out soon enough. Put some pants on and I'll take you home in a little bit. Okay?"

She nodded, heading for her room, trying to ignore the police standing in her front entryway, talking amongst themselves at what happened.

After getting dressed properly, she went over to where Tony's team was standing. She carefully approached the group. "Have you found out what happened?"

They all shook their heads, but Gibbs spoke. "Not yet. That will probably take a few days, or however long it takes for _your_ victim to recover."

She nodded and stepped back, leaving with Tony in the following ten minutes.

* * *

It was almost New Years Eve before the case was solved, and it didn't rest easy with Tony. At least the part involving Kristina. Even though the two cases weren't directly connected, he was still bothered. Apparently, her mother had found out where she lived and paid the man -someone from the streets- to go in and bring Kristina to see her. The guy had the wrong apartment number when he burst into the first apartment. He only found the body, not the one that killed the person. It was by luck in his panic that he burst into Kristina's apartment. It was there he had met the wrong end of her baseball bat.

While Kristina chose not to live in fear over the thought that her mother was still trying to get under her skin, her father was. He was worried that the woman would go even further over the line and actually hurt their daughter. However, he couldn't find her. She wasn't in any recent database. It was like she didn't exist. However, he wouldn't breathe easy until she was somewhere where she couldn't bother either of them.

Which was why Tony had propositioned Jimmy Palmer to be his daughter's date (a ruse, Tony thought. She needed someone keeping an eye on her) for New Year's Eve. The younger man stammered as he thought about it. "She has to like someone to go out with them, Tony."

Tony looked to the male. "Trust me. She'll be interested. Don't worry." Because Tony wasn't worried. He knew it would go without a hitch.

* * *

Tony was wrong. Big surprise there. He had convinced his daughter to go out with Jimmy and the pair had left with a quiet threat from Tony: "Keep her safe."

This caused the younger man to panic ever so slightly. It caused the younger man to panic just a little bit more when his date disappeared shortly after one in the morning.

He called up the most logical solution right after he noticed she was gone: McGee. He knew if he called either Gibbs, Tony, or even Ducky, his life and job would be on the line. He couldn't risk his job, he loved it way too much.

McGee sounded slightly groggy as he received the call. "Hello?"

"McGee! Thank God you're awake! I have a problem."

"What is it, Jimmy?" he asked, waking up.

"Oh... you were asleep? I'm sorry. But I lost Tony's daughter."

Tim had only been asleep about 15 minutes before Jimmy called him. "How did you lose her? And what are you doing out with her?"

"I don't know how I lost her. And we went out for New Year's."

"Alright. Calm down. Where are you now?"

"The National Mall."

"Alright. How long have you been there?" He was now getting dressed.

"Since 10 o'clock tonight. There was an employee New Year's party at the museum where she works."

"Alright. Meet me at the Navy Yard."

"But... what if she's in a ditch somewhere nearby?"

"What if she is at home?" McGee asked.

"Alright. We're agreed to not tell anyone?" Jimmy asked.

McGee chuckled. "Sure. Why not."

* * *

Fifteen minutes later the two men met up at headquarters, Tim looking quite tired as he booted up his computer and Jimmy looking quite frazzled. "You did try calling her phone, right?" McGee asked him.

Jimmy nodded. "Several times. No answer."

"Alright." He said. "What's her number?"

Jimmy relayed the number after looking it up in his phone, pacing in front of McGee's desk.

"She's at... " he told the address, looking to Jimmy. "Is that her address?"

Jimmy shrugged. "I picked her up from Tony's apartment."

McGee sighed as he pulled up her driver's license, the addresses didn't match. He then frowned, looking at Jimmy.

"Please?" The younger man asked, without having to ask much else.

McGee sighed again as he shut down his computer. "Let's go, autopsy gremlin." He muttered, using Tony's nickname for the man.

Jimmy followed McGee out of the building and to his car, getting in the passenger side, still nervous. "Think Tony will kill me?"

"Only if she's dead."

Jimmy swallowed hard as McGee drove.

* * *

They arrived in front of the apartment building twenty minutes later, parking in the first available spot. McGee got out, looking up, and put his hand on his holster, just to be on the safe side. The pair walked into the building and into the elevator, pressing the designated floor.

McGee wasn't sure how Tony would react if his daughter really was hurt and no one bothered to include him in the man hunt. He was sure Tony would kill the pair. And probably enlist Gibbs to help.

Jimmy's thoughts were along the same lines as McGee's, but was smart enough not to voice them anymore. He continued to have positive thoughts about it all.

As they reached the door, McGee knocked, hand back on his gun. It took a few minutes before the door opened, revealing a male around 26. His eyes widened at the pair. "Uhm. Hello?" he asked.

"NCIS." McGee said simply. "But we're looking for Allison DiNozzo."

The man nodded. "Please come in." He said to them, opening the door wider to allow them entrance.

Jimmy and McGee both exchanged looks. "Who are you, exactly?" Tim asked.

"Bryan Owens. There she is." He said pointing to the couch where Allison was asleep. The dress she was wearing barely seemed to cover anything as she slept, which was why Bryan had tossed a blanket over her, but she was a rough sleeper, so it was wrapped around her.

McGee gave Jimmy a dirty look. "Why is she here?"

The man shrugged. "She just showed up. I got off duty right before she arrived."

"And you don't know why?"

"She just said she needed a place to crash and my address was the first she thought of."

McGee nodded. "I'll take her back home now."

"It's no trouble if she stays."

"Oh. I'm sure there will be if she does."

"Mr. DiNozzo won't mind. She's safe here."

"Well... Jimmy here was in charge of keeping her safe tonight." Tim said pointing to Jimmy, who grinning weakly.

Bryan gave Jimmy a dirty look. "Clearly you don't know Allison very well. Or else you would have done a better job on keeping tabs on her when she's been drinking."

Jimmy shook his head. "That much was never explained to me. I know now though."

Bryan stared at the man, guessing he wasn't much older than himself. "What exactly was going on when she left?"

Palmer blushed. "What happened isn't important. What's important is getting her home safely." He said, confidence in his voice, finally.

Bryan looked at the pair. "Alright. I'll let her go with you two. You know where she lives?"

McGee nodded. "She lives in my building." He hadn't thought of that until just then. He could have went and knocked on her door to see if she was home. Good thing he didn't.

Bryan nodded. "Alright. Drive safely." he said and went to wake her up, which wasn't an easy task.

* * *

Nearly an hour later, McGee had dropped Jimmy off to get his car from the Navy Yard and brought Allison back to their building. She didn't put up much of a fight getting up to her door, although she had trouble getting the key in the lock, to which McGee aided her.

She smiled sleepily, and perhaps a bit drunk-like at him, before kissing him lightly. "Happy New Year, McGee!" she said and shut the door in his face, leaving him wondering what had just happened.


	16. Chapter 16

**DISCLAIMER**: Lastly, it's not mine.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: What would y'all say if I told you this was the last chapter? I mean. I've hit serious writer's block. The only thing I can think of is two little thing and well. They would be epic failure. So. I don't know what to do guys. HELP!

There's a poll on the profile too. If you want, leave an idea in my inbox.

* * *

January 2011

Kristina was 25 years old. She had no real fears such as enclosed spaces or spiders. She had no irrational fears such as elevators; okay, this was a lie. She had one irrational fear. Nightmares were practically non-existent, even after her apartment was burglarized. She wasn't intimidated by guns or size. But yet, here she was at 25, scared of her own mother. The woman who gave her life. Who at one point loved her. She wasn't particularly scared; but more or less worried that something bad would happen.

She hadn't told her father about this meeting because she was sure he would worry himself to death. Or have her tailed. Either wasn't pleasant to think about, but she could take care of herself. She knew that. She had some questions for her mother and quite a few choice phrases to say as well. But she wouldn't say those phrases. She was going to be the adult in the conversation.

She agreed to meet in a general public area; an area in Garfield Park. It was a pleasant place, but she was sure this was the last time she would ever associate it with pleasantries. No, she had to be optimistic. She wouldn't bring the doom and gloom to this area. She would go in with a positive attitude. Nothing could damage a situation more than a negative attitude.

There she was. Kristina inhaled deeply as she saw her mother across the way. They did look similar physically. They were about the same height and had similar body structures. She could instantly see how her father would have been attracted to her when she was younger. When Kristina was younger, it was hard to predict who she would favor as she grew older; and seeing as how the last time she saw her mother was when she was 13 years old, both had changed.

She warily approached the woman, her hand nervously playing with the hem of her shirt. "Excuse me?" she asked, looking to the woman. She definitely looked like her mother now that she was up close. The only differences was that this woman was definitely paler than she was, and her eyes were more blue than Kristina's grey-blue.

The woman turned to Kristina, eyes widening. "Allison?" she asked, the shock disappearing as fast as it appeared, replaced by a cold look.

She nodded. "Yes... Mom." she said, trying to resist the urge to have a tone in her voice and to roll her eyes.

"Sit." She said simply.

Kristina shook her head. "No thank you, I'll stand. Not to skip the small talk, but what do you want?"

The woman, Erica, snorted. "My God. You are like your father. Straight to the point."

"Yeah. Well. It cuts the bull."

Erica rolled her eyes. "Fine. I want you back in my life."

Kristina stared at her in disbelief. "Wait. What? You've been gone nearly twelve years. And the first time you contact me is to insult me several different ways. And now you want to be all buddy-buddy with me?"

"Clearly I was mistaken about what I said. I was aiming more towards your father. I thought he would fail at raising you."

"No. If anyone failed, it was you. Dad raised me well; he never had a problem with me."

"Well. I said I was mistaken."

"Why do you want in my life?"

"Because... when you were a kid, I never understood you. I figured that when you became an adult, we could bond."

"I've been an adult for 6 years. Where were you before."

"I'm sorry. I mixed up your birthdate."

"Messing up the day is a mistake. Getting the year wrong by several years is not caring."

"Like your dad is any better at me at remembering details."

"Don't involve Dad. He's a damn sight better than you. He's done everything he can for me and more. He picked up the pieces you destroyed."

"A regular Prince Charming. Did you know he wasn't always like that?"

"I doubt that."

"When you were littler, it took practically breaking his arm to get him to take you for a weekend."

"That's not true. If that's the case, then why did he do so much with me and act like he enjoyed it?"

"He couldn't let you see him regretting getting me pregnant, could he?"

"Anyways. Why should I let you in my life?"

"Because I'm interesting. We could have a good relationship if you let us."

"No thanks. You dropped out of my life. I want to drop out of yours."

"Your father brain washed you, didn't he? What all did he say about me?"

"He didn't brainwash me. I pieced things together on my own."

"Such as?"

"You're a whore for one."

Erica snorted at this. "I am _not _a whore."

"The night jobs?"

"Okay. I was an exotic dancer. So what."

"You never came home!"

"I crashed at friend's houses..."

"I was a little kid! You left me there! I bet you were hoping I'd accidentally kill myself, huh?"

"I would never think that. I did love you."

Kristina ignored the past tense. "You could have had a normal day time job and be a decent mother."

"Why should I have? You obviously preferred your father to me since day one!"

"I still loved you! You were my mom! I had a bond with you that was practically unbreakable. You ruined the relationship we could have had!"

"What bond? You were your dad's biggest fan! Hell. You never even saw him that much and your first word was "dada". How could I compete?"

"You could have gotten your act together and tried. But we're not here to talk about Dad."

Erica rolled her eyes. "Fine. Are you going to let me in?"

"No! You called me a whore!"

"Are you a virgin?"

"No... but that doesn't mean I've slept with everyone in the 301 area code."

"Fine. I'm sorry." She definitely didn't sound it.

"Still doesn't mean you're my new best friend."

"What can I do to have some relationship with you?"

"Don't ever contact me again. I don't want you in my life. Meeting you again was the biggest mistake I could have ever made. You know. I may look like you but I sure as hell am glad I am nothing like you."

"I'm sure you'll end up like me eventually."

"No. Never. I would never walk out of my kid's life if I ever have any."

"Right. You think that. You'll fail them. Just because you have some degree and you think the world of your dad doesn't mean that you won't end up like me. You'll end up as some whore in some dank dark place being used over and over again. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Your precious Daddy can't save you from everything."

Kristina didn't even bother saying anything as she turned and walked away.

* * *

Tony looked across the walkway to his partner's desk. "Ziva. Have you heard from Allison?"

She looked up from her reports, shaking her head. "No. I have not talked with her in a couple weeks. Is something wrong?"

Tony frowned, "We were supposed to have had lunch together today. She never called or texted me to cancel... or to confirm."

"Perhaps she is busy at work?"

"Maybe she had an unexpected business lunch." McGee piped up from his desk.

"Surely she would have let me know guys. Besides, she had today off. That's why we scheduled today. Something's not right. That's my gut talking. Probie! Track this number." He said, reciting a number from memory.

"Tony! That is a bit extreme. It is a lunch date. She has not been missing days."

"You don't understand, Ziva. There is no such thing as not contacting one another. Even if it's a text from her saying 'I hate you'. At least I know she is alive."

McGee spoke again. "Tony, her number isn't showing up. I think it's off."

"Can you trace her call log? See if she was meeting someone else."

"That is a serious breach of trust!" Ziva said to Tony.

He looked to her. "Ziva. I don't mean to be rude, but you don't have kids. You don't know what this is like not knowing. This isn't her. Every time you've gone places with her, doesn't she always confirm?"

Ziva nodded. "That is true."

"Besides. I was going to take her to her favorite restaurant. She'd never miss that. She'd rather give her right arm than not eat at Famous Dave's."

McGee looked to his team mate. "I checked her records and..." he listed a number.

Tony's brow furrowed. "Run it." He said, a bad feeling in his stomach.

McGee did so. "It's registered to one Erica Bradley."

Tony swore loudly. "Damnit!"

Both Ziva and McGee looked to him.

He sighed. "That's her mother. Where is her location?"

"She is currently at a Starbucks on M and 5th... that's right outside the Navy Yard..."

Tony stood up quickly, grabbing his jacket. "Keep running Allison's number. I'm going on a coffee run." He said and hurried out the office.

Ziva looked to McGee. "That is one reason I am not wanting children. I would worry way too much."

McGee chuckled and continued running the number.

* * *

Tony walked into the Starbucks, an annoyed look on his face as he looked for the familiar face. He found her. As he walked over, he attempted to calm himself. "Erica." He said simply.

She turned to look at him. "I knew you'd come running. She told you then?"

"I haven't heard from her all day. What did you do to her?"

"I did nothing. We talked."

His jaw tightened. "Erica. Don't lie to me. What. Happened."

"Seriously. We talked. She left. I got coffee. End of story."

"What did you talk about?"

"Her. Me. _You._"

"Joy. When did she leave?"

"Twenty minutes ago, maybe? I don't know."

"Why are you even bothering with her?"

"She is my daughter too."

"You don't care about her."

"Says you."

"What do you want?"

"What are you offering?" she asked, checking him out.

He rolled his eyes. "What will it take to get you off her back?"

"Money."

"How much?"

"Enough to get some asshole off my back."

"How much?"

"10 thousand. Plus a little interest."

Tony nearly fell over. "Leave her alone. Were you going to try and get the money out of her?"

She shrugged. "It was an idea."

"Leave. Her. Alone."

"What will you do about it?"

"I'm a federal agent. You're stalking our daughter. There is a _lot _I can do about it."

She rolled her eyes. "Fine. I'll leave her alone. For now. I may turn up eventually. I am her mother, after all."

"You do and you'll be in jail."

She grinned smugly. "Right. Run along, Tony. Don't you have someone's ass to kiss?"

He glared at her, and walked out of the building. He wouldn't make a liar out of himself and went to another Starbucks for coffee, heading back to the Navy Yard.

* * *

Meanwhile, McGee had traced Kristina's number as apparently she had turned it back on. He decided to go to her, seeing as how he couldn't reach Tony.

He left Ziva with a simple, "Follow up." If Gibbs knew his agents were leaving one by one he would be seeing red. However, the older man was in meetings with the Director and other heads of office all day.

He pulled up to the park where the trace still was, walking along the trail and ultimately ending at a small pond with a dock. As he walked along the dock, he saw her sitting on the railing, head down as she was deep in thought, staring at the ice below.

"Allison." He called to her, hoping not the startle her.

She picked her head up and turned around to look at him. "Hello McGee." She said, not one note of cheeriness in her voice.

He walked over to where she was, sitting the opposite way as her; facing the land while she faced the opposite shore. "What's going on?"

"Did Dad send you?"

"No. He had me look for you, but he didn't send me."

She shook her head. "He pretty much did."

"He was just looking out for you. Apparently you two had a lunch date."

She looked down to her watch. "Damn." she muttered.

He was shocked to here a curse coming from her lips, but said nothing. "Bad meeting?" He asked.

She looked to him. "Dad found out?"

He nodded. "He went to have a meeting too. Or a coffee run as he said."

Kristina sighed. "It wasn't a train wreck, but it was bad."

"What happened?"

"I met her at Garfield Park. We talked. She said some things that... well... hurt. I left. Came here."

He nodded. "What did she say?"

"Thought I was a whore. Or would be. Said things about Dad. Just assumed the worst about me. No remorse what so ever."

"What in particular hurt?"

"The bits about Dad. I can handle insults. But... I don't like people insulting my dad's ability as a parent. He's tried his hardest with me growing up. He brought me up as he thought right. He was stricter than most two parent friends I had. He wanted me on the straight and narrow. He didn't want me to make the same mistakes he did. He did an excellent job."

"And she didn't want to believe that?"

"No. I guess not. She wanted to see him fail."

"And that back fired."

Kristina nodded. "Yep. But there's more."

"Go on then."

She took a deep breath. This part bothered her the most, even though she was sure it was far from the truth. "She said... She said that Dad never wanted me. That he never willingly wanted to spend time with me. That she had to coerce him into being there. I can't believe he would do that." She said, wiping her eyes, feeling foolish for crying.

Tim put his arm around her as best as he could, pulling her towards him gently. He felt odd around crying women, but clearly she needed a friend right now. "I'm more than positive that she was lying."

She hiccuped. "She said he regretted ever getting her pregnant." She said, crying more, leaning into him. It felt like such a heartbreak to think that her father had never wanted her. Her very best friend in the world didn't want her.

With his other hand, he rubbed her back. "You know that's not true. You can look at him and see that he loves you very much."

"He acted like he enjoyed spending time with me then. This could be an act now." She turned her head to look at him in the face.

"So you're believing someone you don't even trust rather than someone who's actions have proved the accusations wrongs one hundred fold?" He asked her, staring at her right back. He knew she could be a bit headstrong in her thoughts.

She felt foolish, but still cried. "It still hurts thinking about it. Knowing that he may have thought of me as some mistake."

Tim didn't know what to say, he just continued comforting her as best as he could.

* * *

McGee arrived back at the Navy Yard 45 minutes later, cheeks and nose red from the cold outside. Tony eyed him as he walked back. "Coffee's cold, McGoo."

He nodded. "Thanks for that." He said and went to go warm it up.

Tony exchanged a look with Ziva before following the other man. He was quiet as he walked into the lounge. "How is she?"

Tim looked to him confused. "What?"

"Allison. How is she?"

"How did you – she's fine. Now."

"Now?"

"She was upset. A bit. She needed some convincing of things, but I think she is all right. Of course, I'm sure she won't be one hundred percent right until you go talk to her."

Tony nodded. "Did she say what was bothering her most?"

"Apparently her mother said that you had to be coerced into seeing her as a small child. That you put on one giant act every time you were with her."

Tony frowned, calling Erica every name under the sun mentally. "Anything else?"

"That you would fail as a parent. She was mostly upset about her mother talking about you."

He nodded. "Alright. Thanks for being there, McGee." He then slapped the man on the back of the head. "That's for any inappropriate thoughts that may have crossed your mind about my daughter at any point in time."

Tim stammered and blushed slightly, trying to not incriminate himself. He was male after all. And he remembered New Year's.


	17. Chapter 17

**DISCLAIMER**: Not mind

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: What would y'all do if I said this was the last chapter? I mean... I think it could be. It depends. It took forever to this of this idea, seriously. I want to thank first my beta, Renthead007, for helping me. And thanks to all my reviewers and readers. You helped me a lot on this little journey. If this isn't the last chapter (because I already know what the last chapter will be), then it's close to it. Please help me decide.

I think that my readers are the best readers out there. Hands down. I don't care what anyone else says. My readers are top notch. They are THE BEST.

* * *

February 2011

1800 Hours

She was his little girl. His reason for living. And once again, he couldn't do anything to help her again. He felt like the world's worst parent as he held her hand while she lied on the hospital bed, hooked up to all sorts of machines and I.V.s. There were nothing he could have done to have prevented this, but he was internally beating himself up anyways.

But like the last time he felt like this, he wasn't alone. His family – consisting of Gibbs, Abby, Ziva, Ducky, and McGee – sat and stood all around the room. Well, almost all. Gibbs was pacing at the foot of the girl's bed. "Stop beating yourself up, DiNozzo."

"Easier said than done, Boss." Tony said, looking to his daughter, who was currently unconscious.

"There was nothing you could have done, Anthony. Accidents happen." Ducky piped up. They had this conversation several times that day.

Tony sighed and stood up, letting go of her hand, heading out of the room. He was upset and needed to clear his head.

* * *

9 hours earlier

It was a rare occurrence that Kristina had a Friday off, and she had to admit, she was having a ball. Granted, it was only 9 in the morning, but she was still having fun. Still in her night clothes, she meandered around in her kitchen, making a face at the lack of breakfast food.

After a quick three second decision, she went to her room and changed into jeans and a t-shirt; slipping her feet into flip-flops, she grabbed her keys and exited the apartment. She knew what she wanted – Cocoa Pebbles. She didn't know why, but she had the taste for it. Cravings were a horrible thing for females.

It was just a few minutes after she got on the road that she didn't know what happened. It happened so fast. The last thing she remembered was making a right hand turn and then everything went black.

* * *

8 ½ hours earlier

It was only 0930 hours and Tony was interrogating the prime suspect in a murder case that had been stretching for three weeks now.

Ziva hated to interrupt the interrogation, but Tony needed to know. She peeked her head in the door, gesturing for Tony to come to her.

He gave her an annoyed look, but she persisted. Sighing, he excused himself and walked over to where Ziva was standing in the door way. "What?" He asked, stilling annoyed.

She hesitated briefly. "Tony.. Allison has been in a car accident."

Tony stood shell shocked. "What?"

"The hospital tried to call you on your cell phone but had no answer." He checked his cell phone: '1 missed call' was on the screen. He looked back to Ziva. "How did they know to call you?"

"They called your desk phone. I answered it."

Tony nodded and looked to their suspect, who was sneering at his reflection, or rather, to the people behind the mirror. "Damnit." He muttered, and walked out of the room, and into observation, trying to not let his anxiety show. "Gibbs. I gotta go. Kristina's been in an accident."

Gibbs looked concerned and nodded to the man, who then hurried out, followed by Ziva. He ran through the bull-pen to grab his keys and coat before heading to the elevator that led to the parking garage without a word to anyone else. His only goal was to be there for his daughter.

* * *

8 ¼ hours earlier

Tony was about to strangle someone. None of the nurses or doctors would tell him a damn thing about what was happening to his daughter. Apparently being a federal agent held no position in a hospital. He was pacing the emergency room when officers appeared. Tony watched as they approached, pulling out their badges.

"Mr. DiNozzo?" One asked.

Tony nodded, pulling out his NCIS badge for identification.

"I'm Officer Friday, this is my partner, Officer Gannon. We were the first on the scene."

"What happened?" Tony asked, leaning against a wall. He really didn't want to know.

The officer named Gannon sighed. "Three car collision, Sir. Apparently your daughter was making a right hand turn when someone ran a red light, hitting her car. Her car then was pushed into a car parked along the curb."

Tony's eyes widened. "What happened to the other driver?"

"Killed on impact. He was going mighty fast, Sir. Well over the speed limit. He was also intoxicated."

"It's only 9:45 in the morning."

The officers nodded, and then shrugged.

Tony sighed, and shut his eyes. "What happened to my daughter?" He asked quietly.

Officer Friday spoke this time. "She was pinned between the three vehicles. We couldn't get to her until the third vehicle was moved, as the vehicle that hit her was attached to hers. Her car and the car that hit hers were T-boned in the drivers side door. We could only get her out via the passenger side, and even then, it was problematic."

"How?"

"She was caught between her door, her seat, and the steering wheel."

Tony grimaced. "She was alive when you got to her, right?"

Gannon bit his lip. "Barely, Sir. I've been an officer for 7 years, and this is by far the worse traffic accident I've ever seen."

Tony nodded. He didn't know what to say. What could he say? "Thank you for helping her." He managed, shaking slightly. He hated to even think of his baby in any amount of pain.

The officers nodded. "Have you had any updates since you've been here about her status?"

Tony shook his head. "They won't tell me a damn thing."

The officers nodded once more. "One of us will come back later to check on her, is that alright."

"Yeah. Excuse me. I have a call to make."

The two men left, leaving Tony alone. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed Gibbs' number. The other man answered on the second ring. "Yeah. Gibbs."

"Boss. It's DiNozzo."

"How's Allison?"

"No clue. I'm being left in the dark. Boss, I'm about to kill someone myself if no one tells me anything."

"Calm down, DiNozzo. I'll bring the team if you need company."

"I need a tranquilizer, Boss."

"Hold tight, son. We'll be there shortly."

* * *

7 hours earlier

The nurse had been out to speak to Tony briefly, barely giving him any idea of how Kristina was. Apparently she had massive internal bleeding, severe head trauma, multiple lacerations and broken bones. She was in surgery and had been since she arrived to try and stop the bleeding.

That had been an hour ago. The team found Tony with his head in his hands, elbows on knees, sitting in a chair in the waiting room. Abby and Ziva immediately went over to him, putting their arms around him, hating to see him so broken. Gibbs and Ducky went to go find a doctor who could give them an update and McGee went to go fetch Tony a coffee. He figured the man needed something.

Ziva, who had an arm around his waist, decided to speak first. "Tony... have they said what was wrong yet?"

Tony merely nodded, trying his hardest to keep his tough as nails shell up. He wanted nothing more than to just break down and cry. But he wouldn't. He couldn't.

"What did they say?" Abby pressed gently.

Tony opened his mouth to speak, but shut it. Finally, he found his voice. "She has massive internal bleeding. Severe head trauma." His voice was quavering. "She's cut up and has broken bones. She's been in surgery for at least two hours." The last bit was spoken in a whisper before he lost his voice again.

The two women continued to hug him, pulling back briefly when McGee offered Tony the coffee. Tony refused, and stood up, deciding to pace the hallway once more.

The three watched him as he moved up and down, completely at a loss.

Gibbs watched the younger man pace, before approaching him. "DiNozzo. Why don't you sit down?"

Tony shook his head. "I can't Boss. I'm too... agitated. I can't think. I don't know what to do. Why did this have to happen to _my _baby?"

"Tony. Just breathe. She's fine."

"How do you know?"

"Am I ever wrong?"

Tony opened his mouth, but decided against it, sighing instead.

Gibbs patted the man on the back, and went to go speak with the rest of the team, leaving Tony to his thoughts once more.

After a few minutes, Ziva went over to talk with Tony, who was leaning against the wall once more, staring at the floor.

"Need to talk, Tony?"

He shook his head. "There's nothing to say."

"How are you feeling?"

Tony shook his head.

"Tony..."

He just shook his head again.

She turned him to face her. "Speak Tony. You're not doing yourself any good by keeping it bottled up."

He looked over her head. "I'm pissed off, Ziva. And lost." He said quietly, sitting on the floor.

She sat next to him, hugging him, nodding. "She'll be alright."

He nodded, but his tough exterior broke, putting his head on her shoulder. She rubbed his back comfortingly, wanting to end his pain.

* * *

6 ½ hours earlier

Tony and Ziva were still sitting against the wall when the nurse, who had previously spoken to Tony, came back out. Tony stood up, helping up his partner when the nurse approached. The remaining team walked over to the nurse, wanting to hear what was going on.

"Miss DiNozzo is out of surgery. We've managed to stop the bleeding so far, but she's going to have to be in the hospital for a few days, at the very least."

They breathed a collective sigh of relief – at least she was out of surgery.

Tony spoke first. "What about her other injuries?"

"They are currently being tended to. As soon as we get her cleaned up, we'll be moving her to another room, where she'll stay for the time being."

Tony nodded. "How long until I – we – can see her?"

The nurse looked hesitant at all the people. "Are you all family?"

The group nodded.

The nurse looked doubtful, but chose to ignore it. "Probably another hour, at the earliest. We have to make sure she is indeed holding up properly for right now."

Tony nodded. "Alright. Thank you." He said and walked over to the waiting room seats, sitting down, the group following slowly. He still didn't feel much better though.

* * *

4 hours earlier

When Tony saw his daughter for the first time after her surgery and hooked up to all the machines, he halted in his steps, causing a minor bumper car reaction with the people behind him. His breath hitched at the sight; she looked so small and frail. He wanted nothing more than to take her in his arms and hold her, to make her feel instantly better. But he knew he couldn't.

Gibbs led him over to the bed, and the to chair nearest her head.

Tony couldn't speak as he gently smoothed her hair, the part that was visible from under the bandages at least. Her face was bruised with a cut running down her forehead and the side of her nose. Her chin was cut horizontally on the underside. Bruises were all over her face.

The team moved around the bed, looking at the girl, who was still unconscious. Abby started sniffling, wiping her eyes; her two friends were both in two different types of pain and she couldn't help either. She hated feeling that way. She needed a distraction. "I need something to eat. Does anyone want to come along?"

Tony looked up. "I will." He said quietly. "I can't be strong for her if I pass out from hunger."

Gibbs and Ziva nodded in agreement, and to go along with Abby.

"I'll stay with her." McGee said. "That way she isn't by herself."

"Alright." Tony said, not wanting to leave his daughter, but he trusted McGee. Standing up, he played with the hair a little longer before turning towards the door, heading out.

Once the two were by themselves, McGee spoke.

"You need to wake up Allison." He muttered, feeling a bit awkward talking to someone who couldn't hear him. "Your father is going to go crazy. He feels responsible even though he didn't do a thing. I suppose that's just a parent thing.

"I guess it's a good thing that you're asleep right now. I'm sure you'd be in a lot of pain otherwise. What are you dreaming about? I'm not good talking to sleeping people. But I hope it helps you, knowing that someone is here. Everyone else went to get food. Including your dad. I can tell he doesn't want to be away from you though.

"This isn't how we wanted to get out of work, you know. Your dad had our primary suspect in interrogation. Luckily after he left, Gibbs went in and the guy spilled all. So at least we got him. It's taken enough time. Your dad did a good job of making him crack though.

"Why were you going out this morning? I thought you stayed in on your days off. What was so important that you had to get? Do you even remember what happened?"

Tim sat there talking for the next ten minutes with her. Not noticing when Tony walked into the room, watching the man talk with his daughter as he leaned against the wall. What peaked Tony's interest was what McGee said next.

"I haven't forgot New Years. It's kind of hard to forget. I've been choosing to ignore it for the last month, only because of how awkward it is. But get better, and we'll talk. I don't know what I'll say yet. But just get better."

Tony spoke up finally. "What happened on New Year's, McGee?"

Tim practically jumped out of his skin as he turned around. He blushed and stammered. "I – well – uhm... that is..."

"Words. McGee." Tony said, not having much patience.

He started stuttering horribly as he tried to tell Tony.

Tony blinked. "What?"

Tim sighed. "Allison left Jimmy on New Years, so Jimmy called me. We traced her phone and found her. I brought her home and before she went in, she kissed me."

"Really now?"

"Are you going to kill me?"

"Not now, McGee. But soon." He said, his voice icy.

Tim gulped while the others walked in, carrying bags of food from the cafeteria downstairs. Tim quickly jumped up and moved over to the couch while Tony went to sit next to his daughter again, not leaving her side for the rest of the time unless absolutely necessary.

* * *

Three days later

Tony was beginning to wonder if his daughter was ever going to regain consciousness. While her vitals were fine and the doctors were pleased with her slow healing, Tony was getting antsy again. He hated leaving her in the hospital at night, and it took several Gibbs glares to get him to leave to sleep. But as soon as he awoke, usually at 6 in the morning, he was at the hospital; his team trickling in throughout the day to keep him company and to see if any progress had been made.

It was 2136 hours and Tony had his head lying on her bed, his hand holding hers when he felt her fingers twitch against his palm. He was instantly awake as his head shot up, looking at her to see if there was any other movement. Gibbs and Ziva had been playing cards absentmindedly when they saw Tony's movements. Instantly they were up.

"What is happening, Tony?" Ziva asked.

"Her hand moved!" He said, unsure if he should be happy.

"DiNozzo... nerves twitch." Gibbs said, trying to be the voice of reason.

"It was different this time." Tony said, not taking his eyes off his daughter.

It was then that her eyelids tried to open, a groan emitting from her mouth where a tube was running down her throat.

"Ziva! Get a nurse!" Tony exclaimed, causing Ziva to rush out of the room, returning moments later with two nurses in tow.

Tony didn't want to move, but did so anyway to let the nurses fix his daughter, who was gagging around the tube. One of the nurses removed the tube, trying to calm the girl down while the other nurse checked to make sure she was okay.

Gibbs watched from over Tony's shoulder, seeing the nerves jump in Tony as the other man itched to get over to his child. "Easy, DiNozzo." He muttered.

"They are hurting her." Tony growled.

Gibbs and Ziva rolled their eyes. "It's a helpful hurting." Gibbs said.

Eventually the nurses moved away, pleased with their patient, and turned to Tony. "Mr. DiNozzo, your daughter is doing excellently. She's semi-conscious, and will probably go back out shortly. Please feel free to talk with her and to try to calm her down. Her blood pressure is a little high..."

"She doesn't like being restrained." He said

"But she isn't."

"She probably can't move herself. It might be scaring her. I'll try and help." He said to them. "I'll let you know when she goes back out." He said and moved to his daughter's side. "Hey Scout." He said gently, running a hand over her head lightly again, holding her hand with his other hand.

Her eyes were half opened, and she couldn't focus. She did however, let out a mumbled noise.

"Yeah, it's Daddy." He murmured to her. "I'm glad to see you're awake, baby. You had us all frightened."

Her hand tightened on Tony's slightly, which relieved Tony tremendously.

"You had a car accident. Do you remember?"

She moved her head once in a negative fashion.

"I didn't think so." He said. "But Gibbs and Ziva are here. Abby and McGee were here, but they left to get food. Ducky has been in and out too. Can you talk any?"

She tried speaking once more, but a strangled sound came out.

"Sh. Never mind. You don't need to talk. You need to rest. Go back to sleep."

She shook her head again.

"You're barely conscious and can't talk, and yet you argue with me? Glad to know you're feeling better." He said, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "But go to sleep, Kristina. I love you."

She squeezed his hand three times lightly, trying to respond to him. Tony nearly cried at that, but wasn't that much of a wimp.

"I'll be here when you wake up again, okay?"

She nodded this time, letting her eyes shut again.

Gibbs and Ziva had stood off to the side during the exchange, watching the two. "Feel better, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked.

Tony nodded. "Yeah, Boss. I do. It's such a relief that she's awake. I was fearing the worse."

"We know, Tony. But at least your mind can rest easier."

"It won't rest until she's home, Ziva." He said to his partner.

"Why don't you go home and rest?" Gibbs asked.

"What if she wakes up again?"

"I'm sure she doesn't want to see you sleeping. She'll know you aren't taking care of yourself. Besides, I'm sure she won't wake until morning."

Tony nodded, standing up, releasing her hand. "I suppose you're right, Boss. Would you..." he trailed off.

Gibbs nodded. "Don't worry. It's covered." The older man said, sitting in the chair Tony had vacated.

"Let us go find Abby and McGee, Tony. You need to eat." Ziva said, pushing Tony gently towards the door.

He nodded and walked out with one final glance to Kristina.

* * *

One Week Later

Kristina DiNozzo was finally awake for longer than a few minutes, much to everyone's pleasure. While she wasn't discharged from the hospital, she was making progressing quick enough. She was finally allowed to sit up and talk to her visitors, even though speaking was still a bit rough.

She was currently being examined by a doctor while Tony floated near by, making sure the doctor didn't cause any unneeded pain to his daughter. Kristina watched Tony's actions, shaking her head lightly. "You're a worry wort." She whispered.

Tony rolled his eyes, and nearly raced over to her as she flinched when the doctor touched a particularly sensitive spot on her scalp. "How much longer do I have to be in?" she asked the doctor.

"Well, if you keep progressing as well as you are, I'd say in another 5 or so days."

She groaned.

"I know... but we have to make sure that you're at least 85% better. I'm still not liking the results of your brain scans."

"Don't insult the girl just because her brain is so hard to find..." Tony said teasingly.

The doctor chuckled. "I'll be back later." He said, leaving the room, allowing the entire team in the room.

Tony went back to his usual chair. "Are you okay? Do you need anything?"

"The pain meds are wearing off." She muttered, trying to shift in the bed.

"Well. The nurse said you can't have any right away."

"The nurse says a lot of stuff. She's talking out her -" She was cut off by Gibbs clearing his throat, causing the woman to blush.

Tony chuckled. "Just hold tight Scout. You'll be out sooner than you think."

"Yeah. But then I'm stuck on bedrest forever. Followed by years and years of physical therapy. I don't know when I'll be able to go back to work..." she had been irritable since she had woken up properly. The doctor said that it was caused by the head injuries.

"Don't worry." Tony said to her. "It won't be forever. You'll probably be at work within a month. Nothing can stop you. You're stubborn enough."

She sighed. "I just want all these stitches off. The casts aren't too bad, but the stitches itch like crazy." She muttered.

He nodded. "Doc said you can get some out tomorrow. Like the one under your chin and on your nose."

She was awfully self-conscious about her injuries now. While she was never vain before, it was an awareness that was constantly being thrown in her face. She scowled at the thought of having a scar run down the center of her forehead.

"While you're busy scowling, do you mind if the rest of us get a bite to eat?"

She shook her head. "Bring me back something too. Please, Daddy?" she asked.

"I'll see what I can do. Stay put." He said and kissed her forehead.

"Where am I going to go?" She questioned.

He smiled as he headed out the door. "I love you, Scout."

"I love you too, Daddy."


	18. Chapter 18

**DISCLAIMER**: Nope!

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: I felt bad for posting such a short chapter earlier, so I went ahead and wrote this up. I'm thinking we're going to have some retro chapters. I hope you don't mind. This is the first of a few. I thought it was cute, but hey, I'm biased.

* * *

June 1991

While this wasn't Tony DiNozzo's first father's day, it was his first father's day with a kindergartener and all the arts and crafts associated with it. She was quite pleased with herself, as she had made him a fine popsicle stick photo frame, with a picture she drew inside of it. This was the gift he received at seven in the morning.

She had been more than pleased with herself as she sat on his back while he slept, waiting for him to wake up. Thankfully, she only had to wait ten minutes before the man knew something wasn't right and he gently moved so that she rolled off onto the bed next to him.

Due to the fact that he was currently into the same zip code as his little girl, she spent every other week with him, and she loved every minute of it. He had come home officially from university last year and had been stuck to his side for the first few months, afraid he would leave yet again. She somewhat understood the idea that when Daddy went away to school, he was trying to make her have an even better life. Daddy had to go to school so that he could have a lot of money to buy her whatever she wanted. She wouldn't really understand much else, so he left it with that. Because of the weekly arrangements, he worked your typical 8-4 job, having her stay at a day care for an hour or so after school. He didn't like that he couldn't be there all the time, but enjoyed the time he had with her.

"Daddy. It's your day." She said to him, quite matter-of-factly.

"My day?" He questioned playfully. "My birthday isn't until next month."

"No. Your other day. Father's day!" She said happily.

"Oh yeah... I'm a father?" he teased, still slowly waking up, rubbing his eyes.

"Daddy!" she scolded him, lying down next to him.

"Okay. I'm a father. And it's father's day. Now does Daddy get to go back to sleep... for another hour or so? Please?" He asked the child.

She sat back up. "No! You get presents. Duh."

"Oh? Do I now?" He asked, lying on his side, propped on his elbow.

She nodded, and handed him the small package she held in her hands. He hadn't noticed it before.

He opened it up carefully, before curiously looking at the thing in his hands. It took him a few moments to realize what it was. "You made me a picture frame!" He said, quite positive that's what it was.

She nodded. "_And _I drew the picture."

"Well thank you. I love it." He said, looking at the little drawing of what he assumed was some sort of cat. "Is it a tiger, baby?"

"No. It's the movie lion." She said in reference to the MGM lion.

He chuckled. "Ah. I see. Very nice." He could now see the gold ribbon which was to surround the cat. He figured the giant letters below was supposed to be 'MGM'.

She nodded. "My teacher said to draw something that our dads liked a lot. You like movies." She said and lied down next to him again.

"That's true. Can Daddy sleep again?" he asked, yawning, moving back to lie on his back, straightening the arm that was closest to her so that she could lie her head on it, which she did.

She shook her head, but yawned right along with him. "I'm hungry."

"Give me a few minutes." He said, shutting his eyes.

She nodded, and shut her eyes, falling asleep before her father could.

* * *

Tony was given the privilege of sleeping another two hours before he felt the movements of the little girl next to him. He could tell she wasn't quite awake, probably having a bad dream.

He figured she would wake herself up, lying with his eyes shut before he heard her her crying in her sleep. He moved so that he could hold her, to wake her up. Not exactly a pleasant second father's day gift, but he knew she would grow up fast, so he treasured it.

She woke up, moving closer to him. "Daddy. I had a bad dream."

He nodded. "Want to talk about it?"

She shook her head. "I'm hungry."

"Alright. You want to cook?" He asked her.

"Daddy. I'm not allowed to touch the stove."

"Good girl. Just checking." He said and sat up. "Go get dressed for the day."

She grumbled and got off the bed and out of the room, heading for her own.

It was twenty minutes later in the kitchen that she presented Tony with his second official father's day gift.

While he was already dressed, he looked to his daughter, who was still in her pajamas. "I thought I said to get dressed."

"I didn't want to." She said simply. "I got you something else."

He frowned at her disobedience, but chose not to say anything, something he may regret in the long run. "Okay. What is it?" He asked.

She handed him a card she had made. It was a grey card written in dark red marker. All it said was 'happy fathers day. I love you' but he still loved it.

"It's awesome. Thank you."

She smiled, proud. "I told my teacher you went to school far away and she asked what school so I told her what I thought was your school and then she looked it up and told me the colors were red and grey." She said with a big smile on her face.

He laughed a bit at her story. "I love it. Ohio State colors are always a good choice."

She nodded. "Happy father's day." She said and hugged his legs. He responded my picking her up and hugging her. "Thank you. I love you, Kristina."

"I love you too, Daddy." She answered, arms around his neck. "We're gonna have a good day?"

He nodded. "Every day with you is a good day."


	19. Chapter 19

**DISCLAIMER**: NCIS is not mine, despite everything.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Well, here we are - chapter twenty! Can you believe it?! I'm not too particularly thrilled with this chapter, but oh well. I think I should have ended the story a few chapters ago. But, I still have my faithful readers and reviewers. I've been lacking ideas here lately, but I'm trying. Cut me some slack. I have a writing prompt over at my journal - a Tiva story involving being undercover, so I am focusing on that. But I'll still update this daily as always.

Also, I was sick today, so if these are worse than usual...

* * *

January 1986

The child was finally awake for more than a few minutes. She had been up for an hour now, just content with making noises and staring at the man whose face would occasionally pass by her line of sight; the man who was currently holding her as the television played before them.

At a commercial, Tony DiNozzo shut off the TV, picking up the little girl so she could face him; football holding.

"So. As you may or may not know, your probationary phase is coming to an end." He began, holding his finger out so she could grip it, which she did.

"This probationary phase determines whether or not I will still be your dad. I know, big decision. And I have to tell you that cute actions won't sway my decision." His finger was now in her mouth, being gummed.

"Now. We had a couple of close moments that swayed negatively in your direction. For instance, puking on Daddy will never win you brownie points. Ever. Second, getting very sick is bad for Daddy's heart." The baby gurgled, listening to her father's voice as he spoke.

"However, I decided to overlook those little events with the promise that they will never happen again. Deal?" She made a little noise, just good timing on her part.

"Good. It's a deal then. But my final decision. I will remain your daddy. However, we will have another meeting like this when you're fifteen. As you will be a teenager, Daddy may want to get rid of his Daddy privileges. Let us hope you aren't a horrible teenager. I don't think you will be though." Tony said, kissing the baby's forehead.

"Are you okay with me still being your daddy?" A hint of a grin passed over her face, causing Tony to smile broadly.

* * *

June 1987

The man was content with sleeping in. Very, very content with it. He hadn't heard any noise coming from the crib that sat near his bed, so he figured she was either asleep or playing with her toys. This mean good things for him. It meant just a hair more sleep. It had been a rough semester at school. But he was glad to be home now. His little girl had changed so much. Now 18 months old, she was toddling around, something that worried him to no end.

But she was in a crib. Which he was still grateful for. It meant he wouldn't have to worry about her getting into things while he slept. However, on this particular morning...

He felt something pulling down his blanket. At school, this meant that he was probably going to get lucky by the girl he invited over the night before. But he wasn't at school. He was at home. There had been no woman. He sat upright just as a little light brown haired head popped up over the edge, smiling. "Da!" the child said happily, finishing climbing up the bed.

He stared in disbelief as the child crawled over to where he was, snuggling in his arms.

Finally, he came to his senses. "How did you get out?" He questioned.

She looked up to him, poking him in the cheek.

"Yeah. That doesn't answer my question." He said, getting out of the bed, holding her as he did so and walked over to where the crib was. The bar was still up.

He looked down to his child, who was yawning and rubbing her eyes, lying her head on his shoulder. "You climbed out... didn't you. But how?" He asked, in disbelief. He didn't really expect an answer from the child.

He groaned. He knew what this meant. She was ready for her own bed and her own room. His baby wasn't really a baby any more. Technically, she hadn't been for some time. Officially, she was considered a toddler.

"No. No. No. This isn't good, Kristina. I wasn't thrilled to pieces when you started walking. We definitely can't have you in a regular bad. I can't handle it."

She stared at him, poking his nose this time.

"You're such a help. If I let you sleep in the big bed right now. Do you promise not to go anywhere, and just lie there with Daddy?"

She nodded. That had been her whole idea from the beginning.

"Good." He said and moved back to the bed, lying her down in the middle. He put pillows on her other side of her so she wouldn't roll off, and then put his arm across her, lying on his side. "Sleep well, okay? Daddy will be here when you wake up."

She nodded. "Love you, Daddy." She murmured, drifting off.

* * *

October 1994

The note Kristina brought home from school bothered him. She wasn't a bad student, and never had notes home. He was surprised that one wasn't sent to her mother. What bothered him more was the fact that the teacher had requested a parent/teacher conference. Those were never fun things.

Anthony DiNozzo walked the hallways of the school before stepping into the classroom, looking at the short desks and artwork that graced the walls.

"Ah. Mr. DiNozzo." The teacher, a young woman of 27, walked over to him, holding out her hand for him to shake.

He shook her hand. "Good afternoon. What's going on?" he asked, cutting straight to the chase.

She gestured to a chair for him to sit down, which he did. "Allison's behavior for the past two weeks has been very... out of character, for her."

"How?"

"She's been acting out. Not listening, pushing other kids around."

Tony frowned. "That's not like her at all."

"I know. Which is why I contacted you. I can usually tell when she's with you and when she's with her mother. When she's with her mother, she's more... careless. But never acts out. She is more focused and nose to the grind stone when she's with you."

Tony shrugged. "Not sure if that's good or not in my favor."

"It's good. It's stability. Except for this week."

"I only got her on Friday. It's only Tuesday now."

The woman nodded. "Between last week and the last two days, she's had more bad marks than the other students have had all month."

Tony was shocked. "What actions are to be done?"

"Well. That's what I was going to ask you. Has there been a change in her home life with you?"

He shook his head. "I'm working the same hours. Still have the same routine."

"No girlfriend?"

He arched an eyebrow, but shook his head. "No. None. Even if I did, the week I have her is our week. She's first priority."

She was impressed. "And her mother?"

He shrugged. "No idea. I see her for a few minutes on Friday afternoons when I either drop off or pick up Allison."

"Has Allison talked to you about anything?"

He shook his head. "No. But it looks like we'll be having a chat tonight."

She nodded. "If her behavior gets worse, I'm going to have to report her to the principal. I know she's a good student, but it's not healthy. It could escalate."

Tony nodded, and stood up. "She'll behave better. I assure you."

"I'll hold you to that, Mr. DiNozzo."

He left the room and the school, driving to the after-school care place.. He was wondering how to talk to his daughter for the first time in a long while. Communication was so free and easy between the two. He never had to pry things out of her.

After picking her up, the ride home was quiet. Well, on his end. She was chattering away about her school assignments and art projects, while he listened. It was at the apartment when he finally approached her.

"Allison."

Her head shot up off the couch where she was lying. He never used her first name unless she was in trouble. She looked to him. "Yes?"

"Your teacher says you're acting up in school."

She made a face, wondering if she could get out of it. "Not really..."

"Allison."

"Okay. A little bit."

"Why?" He asked, crossing his arms.

She shrugged.

"Allison."

"Mom has a new boyfriend."

He groaned and rolled his eyes at the lack of couth his ex-girlfriend had. He sat next to his daughter. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't think it would matter."

"But why are you acting up?"

"I thought maybe my teacher would call Mom. And tell her. Not you."

He sighed. "You can't act up because of something you don't like."

"But.."

"No buts. Getting in trouble solves nothing."

"Mom's been ignoring me."

"Have you talked to her about it?"

"I said she's been ignoring me."

"Not that much if you're still going to school."

She sighed. "Do you really have to go somewhere else to work?"

Aha. He knew this would come up eventually. "Yes, baby. I have to. As much as I hate to."

"Why can't I live with you?"

"My schedule is going to be messed up. It's not good for little girls. Your mom is a good mom. She just has setbacks. I promise. It'll work out in the end. No more acting up in trouble."

"Am I in trouble now?"

He sighed. "No privileges _here_. Your mom won't listen if I told her you're in trouble." He muttered the last bit. "But no privileges here for the next two weeks you're here. If I catch wind you're still acting up... it'll be worse."

She nodded, heading for her room.

Tony sighed. He knew he should have come down harder, but couldn't. He hated putting his daughter on the line in-between her mother and himself. But her mother should know better about bringing boyfriends around. It happened before. But she would act up at Tony's house instead of school. Of course, the girl hadn't started school yet. He sighed once more, putting his head in his hands. He could only hope that one day Erica would grow up and be a decent mother. Or that he could get custody once he had normal hours. But that didn't look like it would happen anytime soon.


	20. Chapter 20

**DISCLAIMER**: NCIS is not mine, despite everything.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Well, here we are - chapter twenty! Can you believe it? I'm not too particularly thrilled with this chapter, but oh well. I think I should have ended the story a few chapters ago. But, I still have my faithful readers and reviewers. I've been lacking ideas here lately, but I'm trying. Cut me some slack. I have a writing prompt over at my journal - a Tiva story involving being undercover, so I am focusing on that. But I'll still update this daily as always.

Also, I was sick today, so if these are worse than usual...

* * *

January 1986

The child was finally awake for more than a few minutes. She had been up for an hour now, just content with making noises and staring at the man whose face would occasionally pass by her line of sight; the man who was currently holding her as the television played before them.

At a commercial, Tony DiNozzo shut off the TV, picking up the little girl so she could face him; football holding.

"So. As you may or may not know, your probationary phase is coming to an end." He began, holding his finger out so she could grip it, which she did.

"This probationary phase determines whether or not I will still be your dad. I know, big decision. And I have to tell you that cute actions won't sway my decision." His finger was now in her mouth, being gummed.

"Now. We had a couple of close moments that swayed negatively in your direction. For instance, puking on Daddy will never win you brownie points. Ever. Second, getting very sick is bad for Daddy's heart." The baby gurgled, listening to her father's voice as he spoke.

"However, I decided to overlook those little events with the promise that they will never happen again. Deal?" She made a little noise, just good timing on her part.

"Good. It's a deal then. But my final decision. I will remain your daddy. However, we will have another meeting like this when you're fifteen. As you will be a teenager, Daddy may want to get rid of his Daddy privileges. Let us hope you aren't a horrible teenager. I don't think you will be though." Tony said, kissing the baby's forehead.

"Are you okay with me still being your daddy?" A hint of a grin passed over her face, causing Tony to smile broadly.

* * *

June 1987

The man was content with sleeping in. Very, very content with it. He hadn't heard any noise coming from the crib that sat near his bed, so he figured she was either asleep or playing with her toys. This mean good things for him. It meant just a hair more sleep. It had been a rough semester at school. But he was glad to be home now. His little girl had changed so much. Now 18 months old, she was toddling around, something that worried him to no end.

But she was in a crib, which he was still grateful for. It meant he wouldn't have to worry about her getting into things while he slept. However, on this particular morning...

He felt something pulling down his blanket. At school, this meant that he was probably going to get lucky by the girl he invited over the night before. But he wasn't at school. He was at home. There had been no woman. He sat upright just as a little light brown haired head popped up over the edge, smiling. "Da!" the child said happily, finishing climbing up the bed.

He stared in disbelief as the child crawled over to where he was, snuggling in his arms.

Finally, he came to his senses. "How did you get out?" He questioned.

She looked up to him, poking him in the cheek.

"Yeah. That doesn't answer my question." He said, getting out of the bed, holding her as he did so and walked over to where the crib was. The bar was still up.

He looked down to his child, who was yawning and rubbing her eyes, lying her head on his shoulder. "You climbed out... didn't you. But how?" He asked, in disbelief. He didn't really expect an answer from the child.

He groaned. He knew what this meant. She was ready for her own bed and her own room. His baby wasn't really a baby any more. Technically, she hadn't been for some time. Officially, she was considered a toddler.

"No. No. No. This isn't good, Kristina. I wasn't thrilled to pieces when you started walking. We definitely can't have you in a regular bed. I can't handle it."

She stared at him, poking his nose this time.

"You're such a help. If I let you sleep in the big bed right now. Do you promise not to go anywhere, and just lie there with Daddy?"

She nodded. That had been her whole idea from the beginning.

"Good." He said and moved back to the bed, lying her down in the middle. He put pillows on her other side of her so she wouldn't roll off, and then put his arm across her, lying on his side. "Sleep well, okay? Daddy will be here when you wake up."

She nodded. "Love you, Daddy." She murmured, drifting off.

* * *

October 1994

The note Kristina brought home from school bothered him. She wasn't a bad student, and never had notes home. He was surprised that one wasn't sent to her mother. What bothered him more was the fact that the teacher had requested a parent/teacher conference. Those were never fun things.

Anthony DiNozzo walked the hallways of the school before stepping into the classroom, looking at the short desks and artwork that graced the walls.

"Ah. Mr. DiNozzo." The teacher, a young woman of 27, walked over to him, holding out her hand for him to shake.

He shook her hand. "Good afternoon. What's going on?" he asked, cutting straight to the chase.

She gestured to a chair for him to sit down, which he did. "Allison's behavior for the past two weeks has been very... out of character, for her."

"How?"

"She's been acting out. Not listening, pushing other kids around."

Tony frowned. "That's not like her at all."

"I know. Which is why I contacted you. I can usually tell when she's with you and when she's with her mother. When she's with her mother, she's more... careless. But never acts out. She is more focused and nose to the grind stone when she's with you."

Tony shrugged. "Not sure if that's good or not in my favor."

"It's good. It's stability. Except for this week."

"I only got her on Friday. It's only Tuesday now."

The woman nodded. "Between last week and the last two days, she's had more bad marks than the other students have had all month."

Tony was shocked. "What actions are to be done?"

"Well. That's what I was going to ask you. Has there been a change in her home life with you?"

He shook his head. "I'm working the same hours. Still have the same routine."

"No girlfriend?"

He arched an eyebrow, but shook his head. "No. None. Even if I did, the week I have her is our week. She's first priority."

She was impressed. "And her mother?"

He shrugged. "No idea. I see her for a few minutes on Friday afternoons when I either drop off or pick up Allison."

"Has Allison talked to you about anything?"

He shook his head. "No. But it looks like we'll be having a chat tonight."

She nodded. "If her behavior gets worse, I'm going to have to report her to the principal. I know she's a good student, but it's not healthy. It could escalate."

Tony nodded, and stood up. "She'll behave better. I assure you."

"I'll hold you to that, Mr. DiNozzo."

He left the room and the school, driving to the after-school care place.. He was wondering how to talk to his daughter for the first time in a long while. Communication was so free and easy between the two. He never had to pry things out of her.

After picking her up, the ride home was quiet. Well, on his end. She was chattering away about her school assignments and art projects while he listened. It was at the apartment when he finally approached her.

"Allison."

Her head shot up off the couch where she was lying. He never used her first name unless she was in trouble. She looked to him. "Yes?"

"Your teacher says you're acting up in school."

She made a face, wondering if she could get out of it. "Not really..."

"Allison."

"Okay. A little bit."

"Why?" He asked, crossing his arms.

She shrugged.

"Allison."

"Mom has a new boyfriend."

He groaned and rolled his eyes at the lack of couth his ex-girlfriend had. He sat next to his daughter. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't think it would matter."

"But why are you acting up?"

"I thought maybe my teacher would call Mom. And tell her. Not you."

He sighed. "You can't act up because of something you don't like."

"But.."

"No buts. Getting in trouble solves nothing."

"Mom's been ignoring me."

"Have you talked to her about it?"

"I said she's been ignoring me."

"Not that much if you're still going to school."

She sighed. "Do you really have to go somewhere else to work?"

Aha. He knew this would come up eventually. "Yes, baby. I have to. As much as I hate to."

"Why can't I live with you?"

"My schedule is going to be messed up. It's not good for little girls. Your mom is a good mom. She just has setbacks. I promise. It'll work out in the end. No more acting up in trouble."

"Am I in trouble now?"

He sighed. "No privileges _here_. Your mom won't listen if I told her you're in trouble." He muttered the last bit. "But no privileges here for the next two weeks you're here. If I catch wind you're still acting up... it'll be worse."

She nodded, heading for her room.

Tony sighed. He knew he should have come down harder, but couldn't. He hated putting his daughter on the line in-between her mother and himself. But her mother should know better about bringing boyfriends around. It happened before. But she would act up at Tony's house instead of school. Of course, the girl hadn't started school yet. He sighed once more, putting his head in his hands. He could only hope that one day Erica would grow up and be a decent mother. Or that he could get custody once he had normal hours. But that didn't look like it would happen anytime soon.


	21. Chapter 21

**DISCLAIMER**: Not mine! It's all Donald Bellisario's!

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: This chapter is for **power214063**, who asked for the chapter in which Tony gets full custody of his daughter. I really enjoyed writing this chapter, and because this was such a success, I would like to take more requests. So feel free to ask away. I'm almost at 20,000 hits! I can't believe it. I'm so thrilled to pieces. My hits are over 1,000 a day, so that's pleasing to me. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. It was 6 pages long on Microsoft Word!

Also, I have never been to a custody hearing, or a hearing in general, so I made it up. My parents are still married, and when my mom had to go to a hearing for my brother, I wasn't allowed to go. So, let's pretend I have a clue on what I'm talking about. Okay? I figured I couldn't be too far off. But if you've ever been to one of these things and want to give me pointers, please feel free to PM me. I won't be offended. I enjoy learning.

Anyway, happy reading!

* * *

Tony DiNozzo had just moved to the Baltimore area; something he was grateful for as now he was closer to his daughter. He also had a new job which he enjoyed as much as anyone enjoyed their job; but it wasn't something that fell into boring routine after a week. He was constantly on his toes.

The knock at his door startled him as he wasn't expecting anyone. Okay, that was a lie, he was expecting the pizza person. He knew it wasn't the delivery guy because he had just gotten off the phone five minutes ago, but if it was them, they deserved a good tip for sure. He pushed away the box he was unpacking and made his way through the maze of boxes to the front door. Upon opening it, he was startled again as he saw his daughter standing before him.

"Wow. Hey there little girl." He said to her, wondering why she was here.

"Hey Daddy." She wasn't a little girl anymore, in a sense. She was thirteen after all. Currently, her arms were laden with belongings, and while she wanted to hug her dad, she couldn't.

He stepped to the side to allow her in. He hadn't seen her in months and didn't know what to say. "What brings you here?" He hadn't even known she knew he was in town. It was to have been a surprise.

"Mom says that now that you live here in Baltimore, I'm your responsibility full time. She basically left me on your doorstep. No, scratch that. She did. No basically about it. She did."

Tony's eyebrows shot up. "How did she even know I was in town?" He asked, and took the things that were left outside his door, putting them off the side inside the apartment, before taking the items in his daughter's arms, setting those on the couch. He then pulled her into a hug. He was glad to see her, no matter what the circumstance.

She quickly reciprocated the hug. "I have no idea. But she did. I was lucky I had time to gather all my things. Majority of my things are in a storage shed. She went ahead and moved all my things there while I was at my friend's house."

Tony rolled his eyes at her mother's antics. It was typical behavior. He didn't even think that she thought that Kristina was her daughter and not someone who just lived with her for the last thirteen years.

"Do you want me, Daddy?"

"Of course I do. What makes you think otherwise?" He couldn't conceive the idea that led to her question. Yes, he was surprised, but that didn't mean he would push her away.

"Mom doesn't."

"Well your mother is..." No, he wouldn't insult the girl's mother in front of her. It would be petty, however deserved. "Your mom just doesn't realize what she's missing out on. Besides, we both know I'm your favorite." Whether playful or not, they both knew it was true.

She nodded, arms still around her dad. "Do you even have room for me here?"

"Yeah. Of course. I have a two bedroom for a reason. Well. I did need a place to put my movies..."

This brought a small grin to her face. "Stop teasing."

"Alright. We'll go get your things tomorrow. But you do realize it'll be difficult trying to get a schedule, right?"

She shrugged. "How do you figure?"

"I'm a cop, baby. Sometimes my schedule will have me working at night. I don't feel comfortable leaving you here by yourself."

"Mom does."

"Well I'm not your mom."

She nodded. "Alright. Go on."

"I'll try and see if you can stay with my neighbor. She's a nice old lady. Very helpful, so far. She's brought me supper a few times since I've been here."

She rolled her eyes. "Alright. I can do that. Could I stay with a friend sometimes?"

"If I talk to the parent first. But I think no matter what happens, we'll make this work. Okay? I am definitely not letting your mom take you away from me again. It was a mistake the first time. I knew I should have gotten custody of you from the beginning, but no judge would have done that."

"Why not?"

"My schedule was too unpredictable. I wasn't home a lot. It wouldn't be good for a little kid to be in that situation."

"And living with Mom was?"

"Okay. You got me there. But still... it's different now. Don't worry. I'll make sure I have full custody of you. You won't be going back to her. The bad thing is you may have to speak against your mother."

She hesitated slightly. "Why?"

"To say that you want to live with me, and reasons why shouldn't be with her."

"What if she gets mad?"

"Baby. What more can she do to you? She's been irresponsible since you've been little. She's hurt you time and time again in various ways."

She nodded, hugging him again. "How long will it take?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. But you're staying here, obviously enough. You can start in this school district come fall. You'll be in ninth grade, right?"

She nodded against him. "Yep. Back to being a small fish in a big pond."

"But you're a cute small fish."

She smiled. "I'm nervous about it."

"Don't be. You'll do great. You're smart. You've got an excellent personality. You'll do wonderful."

"When can you get started on the custody thing?"

"I can probably start tomorrow. I work from 7 in the morning until 3 most days. It just depends on what goes down."

"Alright. Is there anything I can do while you're at work?"

"Meet my neighbors if you want. Unpack. I'm not sure what all there is around here. I don't feel comfortable with you wandering around until I know the area."

They continued to talk for the rest of the night, until he finally realized he had to get up early for work. It took some persuading, but he convinced her to take his bed until they could get hers from storage, along with the rest of her belongings.

* * *

It was an additional three weeks later before Tony was able to get them into court for the hearing. During those three weeks he had hired a lawyer, reviewed the case with the lawyer, and got a court order for the girl's mother. His lawyer was beyond one hundred percent sure that the judge would rule in his favor, especially with everything Tony had told him. There was a small chance, miniscule even, that the judge wouldn't rule in their favor, but that was only because of Tony's schedule.

The man didn't worry though. He knew he would win. Call it a gut feeling.

Ultimately, the day of the hearing came to pass, and Tony was jittery. His new boss wasn't pleased with giving him a day off so soon, but understood when everything was explained. Kristina sat next to her father, head on his shoulder as they sat outside the court room, waiting for it to begin.

"What if they don't agree with you, Daddy?"

"They will."

"There's a chance they won't."

"Well. Then they shouldn't be in the judge's seat and can't see that you living with your mom is a bad situation."

She nodded, and stood up when the bailiff came out to escort them in. Tony stood as well, heading for the door when he felt his daughter's hand slide into his. He squeezed her hand reassuringly, giving her a smile and led her to a seat that was right behind where he was sitting, just behind the barrier.

She fidgeted the whole time, and he could hear her shifting in her seat several times. He truthfully didn't want her to be there, but couldn't stop her if she was needed. Finally, after hearing from Kristina's mother and Tony, the judge called for her to speak. She looked to the floor as she walked to the witness stand, feeling very nervous.

Tony had to fight his instinct to go up to her to make her feel better, and started fidgeting himself. He quickly regained his composure as he realized that him fidgeting wouldn't help her nerves, so he gave her a smile, and looked to his lawyer, who gave him a reassuring nod that everything would be fine.

The judge spoke in a soft voice. "Please state your name for the records."

"Allison Kristina DiNozzo."

"Do you understand why you're here?"

She nodded. "Yes Sir."

"In whose custody do you wish to reside?"

"My father."

"Name?"

"Anthony DiNozzo." To be honest, she didn't know his middle name.

"Reason?"

"He's a good dad. He cares."

"Why do you not want to reside with your mother?"

"She doesn't take good care of me."

"Explain."

"She's left me alone for days on end. She's ignored me time and time again. She cares more about what's going on in her world. I'm not in her world. I'm just some outsider to her."

"How will living with your father differ?"

"He loves me. He makes sure I'm healthy and eats decent meals. He makes sure my homework gets done and that I maintain good grades. I used to stay with him for a week at a time every other week when he lived close by and I loved it. He can be strict sometimes, but well... I guess he has to."

"What happens if he leaves you by yourself while he works, as your mother has?"

"We talked about that. I won't be by myself. I have it arranged with a friend of mine to stay with her on some nights that Dad has to work. And if I can't stay with her, I'll stay with one of his neighbors."

"And during the day?"

"Being by myself for a few hours a day won't hurt me. We all need time to ourselves. Besides, usually his neighbor, being elderly, needs help during the day. I like her."

"And school?"

"What about it?"

"Are you currently enrolled in a school?"

"Enrolling for a school near Dad hasn't started yet. But we've looked at all the options and I found one that I like. And so I won't be alone after school, I intend on doing extra-curricular activities."

The judge nodded. "What if living with your father for more than a week at time proves to be worse than you think? What if it's not all that you think it will be?"

"It can't be worse than being unloved and ignored living with my mother. I'd rather fight with my dad all the time than just be ignored. At least then it's some attention."

Tony was surprised at her answers, it wasn't something they had discussed. It wasn't as if they had rigged the answers, because all her answers were coming from her heart, it was just surprising to hear her responses so formally.

The judge nodded again. Clearly the girl knew she was talking about. "Thank you. You may leave the stand now."

She quickly left the stand and went back to her seat behind Tony, using him as a shield to hide behind. She hadn't liked all the attention.

The judge looked to the entire court now, having been focused on the young girl on the stand before, and cleared his throat. "It has come to my attention that for the health and over all well being of the minor, Allison Kristina DiNozzo, full custody will be granted to the father, Anthony D. DiNozzo, with visitation rights to the mother, Erica J. Bradley. Court dismissed."

Tony relaxed in the seat he had been sitting in as his lawyer patted him on the back.

Erica sneered at him as she left the court room, ignoring her daughter once more as she left, but Kristina didn't really care anymore. Yes, she missed her mom already, but knew it was a worthless fight. So she just went over to her dad, hugging him. "Did I do good, Daddy?"

He nodded, putting an arm around her. "Very good. I'm very proud of you." He then turned to his lawyer. "Is there anything else?"

The lawyer half shrugged. "I'll get the official papers from the judge, of which you'll have to sign, as will her mother. But you won't have to see her, don't worry. Other than that, nothing really. Child support papers will be sent to the mother, if you wish to press it."

Tony shook his head. "She wouldn't send anything anyways. It would be pointless."

The lawyer nodded. "If you wish. But you're free to go. If I need anything from you, I'll call." He said.

Tony nodded, and offered his hand for the other man to shake. "Thanks for everything."

The lawyer shook his head. "I'm just glad to see the courts ruling in favor of the father. It doesn't happen often, which is sad. Apparently they think that the mother is always the more competent one. Which isn't true all the time."

"I'm glad too." He said and stood up, putting an arm around his daughter's shoulders, leading her out of the court room. At least he could finally get her life straight again. He was sure there would be some curveballs, but chose to ignore that for now. Nothing is perfect, but it didn't mean he couldn't try.


	22. Chapter 22

**DISCLAIMER**: Not mine.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: I have no idea where this idea came from, it just popped up. I'm at a loss for ideas. **HELP**! Enjoy this chapter. I also apologize about lack of updates within the past couple days. Been busy and what not.

* * *

January 1986

January

Two and a half weeks. It had been two and a half weeks since his baby was born, and was he with her? No. He was in school, taking a course that he didn't even need to be. He was sure he knew about all the fundamentals of it. It was a simple health course.

Finally, he zoned in on what the teacher was talking about. He figured she was talking about typical first day of course information; syllabus and what not. His school was the on four course per semester schedule. Each course was an hour and a half every day.

"...towards the end of the semester, we will be doing a project in which you each take care of a 'baby' – which will be a doll that has a computer in it that will register how well you take care of it."

Tony raised his hand.

"Yes, Mr...?"

"DiNozzo."

"Okay, Mr. DiNozzo. What is your question?"

"What if students in here already has a baby? Do they still have to participate?"

"Do you have a child, Mr. DiNozzo?"

He nodded. "Yeah."

"Oh? Care to tell me a little about the child?" The teacher was used to having one or two people say they have a child to get out of doing the project, and none had been telling the truth before.

"She's two and a half weeks old. She's beautiful." He said, getting a dreamy look on his face. "I can't even begin to fully describe her."

The teacher nodded. "Well. I can assign you a slight variation project, that would be semester long. Can you bring her in... say... Friday?" She was also used to guys talking about babies to win girls over too. She wanted to test this young man. To see if he was legit.

"Well. She has a doctor's appointment in the morning. But I can get her mom to drop her off right before this class."

"Yes. Do that. That would be lovely." The teacher said to him, thoroughly curious as to what this student would do.

* * *

Friday afternoon came soon enough and Tony was a bit nervous having the baby around so many strangers. He had picked her up at the office after Erica told him that she was cranky from the shots given to her that morning. She had already been crying when Tony walked into the office. He decided that it might be best to just carry her in his arms to the classroom in hopes that would quiet her.

He arrived at the classroom five minutes before class started, trying to get the baby used to the room. The teacher raised an eyebrow as he walked in, infant in arms.

"Is this your child, Mr. DiNozzo?"

He nodded. "Yeah. This is Allison." He said, moving the baby so the teacher could see her face. She however, did not like this and started crying.

"Oh Kristina..." He said, moving her around yet again to try and calm her down. "I know you're not feeling well. But Daddy's here. He'll try and make you feel better." He murmured, walking around with her. The teacher watched, shocked at how paternal he was. She was expecting him to have no idea what to do. To just use the baby as a pawn.

"I must say, Mr. DiNozzo, I didn't think you were really a father."

"Why would I lie?" He asked, rubbing the baby's back, trying to calm her.

"I've had students in the past say they were fathers to try and impress girls, or to get out of doing projects. Never has one actually brought in a baby and had such a bond with the child."

"Well. I figured if I was her dad, I'd be a good one. My dad isn't the best, you know."

She nodded. "How's it been – being such a young father?"

He shrugged. "Hit and miss. I haven't been with her all night yet. But I get her during the day on weekends, sometimes during the week."

"Because of school?"

He nodded. "I have to balance school, work, and her. It's difficult, but I wouldn't trade her for the world."

"So you encourage this?"

"Oh no. Definitely not. It's hard work too. It's scary too. Plus the looks people give me. Most people have the same opinion you did. That I'm just trying to get a girl, using the baby and all. But I'm not. I can get a girl without a baby."

She nodded, watching Tony still try and calm the upset infant. "How old is she?"

"Three weeks tomorrow."

"How much have you learned about her?"

"A lot. After baths, she loves snuggling up. And hates being woken up from naps. She can hold up her head; has been able to since birth. She can scootch around on her tummy if you put your hand by her feet; she'll kick her legs out, so I guess it's like crawling."

The teacher nodded. "I want you to keep a journal about things you do with her. Track her progress, everything. Turn it in at the end of the semester."

He blushed. "What if I already am?"

"You already are?"

He nodded. "It's silly. But I wrote down her first sneeze around me, first cough, first grin, you name it. Her mom has the actual firsts written down though. But I must say, she's not all sunshine and daisies." He said, now that students were filing in, cooing at the sight of Tony holding a baby.

The teacher looked curious. "Explain."

"She sometimes just cries non stop. I can't do anything to stop her. I can change her diaper, feed her, bathe her, burp her, everything. She'll just cry until she tires herself out."

"What do you do?"

"Hold her. Let her know I'm there. I admit, it drives me nuts, not being able to help her, but I read somewhere that if you're frustrated, babies can tell. That makes the situation worse."

She nodded. "What else?"

"She's puked on me. That was gross."

The teacher chuckled. "So she christened you."

He nodded. "It's the first time I used her first name as a scolding thing."

"You don't call her by 'Allison'?"

"Nope. Just the once, did I."

"What do you call her?"

"Kristina."

"What a bond the two of you must have."

He nodded. "I'm her daddy. No denying it. She has my hair color. And personality."

"Is that a good thing?"

He shrugged. For the remainder of class time, Tony talked about her and answered questions students had. It was interesting to say the least. Especially trying to answer questions while trying to calm down the upset infant.

* * *

Later that afternoon, Tony was lying on the couch, holding the baby. "You know Kristina, for your first day of school, you did well. Even if you were screaming most of the time. You behaved better than most other students, actually. I'm proud of you. I also love you. It's going to be horrible when I go off to college, but I'll always love you and be here for you. No matter what, okay?" He questioned and kissed the baby's forehead, content with his sleeping child.


	23. Chapter 23

**DISCLAIMER**: No!

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Okay guys, this is my last chapter. I know, but I felt it was a nice time to end it. I may start another story though. Who knows. There will be an author's note at the bottom with links to visuals.

**YOU GUYS WERE SO AWESOME! I HAD SO MANY HITS AND REVIEWS! A HUGE THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO READ AND REVIEWED**!

* * *

June 2013

This was one day Tony did not want to face. Ever. He couldn't wrap his mind around the concept of this. It was absurd. He refused to believe it.

He was sitting on the bench with his face hidden in his hands when Gibbs walked up next to him. "What's on your mind, DiNozzo?"

"What do you think, Boss?"

"I'm thinking you're dead if you get your suit messed up."

He hadn't thought about that, but then shrugged it off. "I don't care, Boss."

"Speak, Tony."

He sighed softly. "I was her number one for the last 27 ½ years. And now... I'm nothing."

Gibbs chuckled. "I know you have your dumb moments, but still... that's a bit of a stretch."

"How do you figure?"

"I think you're just her number one; you'll always be that."

"But now she has _him_."

"But you're still her father. You're still the one that raised her. You're still her protector."

Tony sighed. "I'm just going to miss her. That's all."

"Yeah. But who is she going to go to when _he_ pisses her off? Or when she doesn't know what else to do?"

"I know, Boss. But _marriage_ is so... I don't know."

"You just want the best for her, DiNozzo. That's understandable. If she wasn't ready, she wouldn't do this. She has a very independent mind."

He nodded and stood up, straightening out his tuxedo. "I wonder how she is."

"You can go see her, you know. Only the groom can't."

He shook his head. "Not now. Not yet. Soon though. Will you go check up on her for me?"

Gibbs nodded and stood, heading for the door. "Don't wrinkle." He exited with a chuckle.

* * *

Abby, Ziva, and a girl whose name Gibbs couldn't remember were currently knocking on the door to where Kristina was setting up. Or should have been. The youngest girl – Anna – was pleading with her to open the door.

"Problems, ladies?" Gibbs asked. Although Gibbs had no official position in the wedding, the running joke was that he was the bridal consultant as for every problem she had throughout the planning, she went to him with. It was even in the bulletin for the wedding, much to his chagrin. He was just everyone's go-to guy.

Abby and Ziva, who were bridesmaids (as they were the closest females to Kristina outside her former college roommate, Anna), turned to their boss, both looking exasperated.

"Oh Gibbs! She's locked us out. Her make-up person needs her to get ready and well... she isn't. We've tried every trick in the book!" Abby exclaimed.

Ziva nodded in agreement. "Even criminals in interrogation were never this tough to break."

He chuckled at the thought of one of his best agents not being able to talk out someone from a room. "All right. Let me talk to her. You girls go get pretty or whatever the hell it is you need to do." He said, gently leading the young woman away from the door and towards Ziva and Abby. "Trust me. My gut says she'll come out."

"Your gut?" Anna asked, confused.

Ziva raised her hand. "Do not question it. You will not understand. He will convince her. Come on."

Abby nodded. "The Gibbs' gut is famous for being right 99% of the time."

"Only 99%, Abs?"

She smiled guiltily. "Okay. 99.9% of the time. Geez Gibbs."

He chuckled. "Alright. Just go."

The three women turned and left, heading for another room. He gently knocked on the door. "Allison? It's Gibbs. Talk."

She opened the door a few moments later, allowing him entry. He was good.

"What's wrong then, kid?"

She moved to the couch, smoothing down the long gown. "Everything."

He sat on a chair adjacent to her. "Such as?"

"I'm afraid I'm breaking my dad's heart."

"Why?"

"Every time I talked to him about the wedding, he just got this look on his face like he was sad. It hurt my heart to see him like that." She said, tearing up again. She had been getting more and more emotional as the days grew closer. She didn't want to lose the close relationship she had with her dad. She wanted to be forever 'Daddy's Little Girl'. She also didn't want to see her dad cry. The few times she had made her cry as well.

Gibbs nodded. "I won't lie. He is upset too. But he is also very happy for you. He is thrilled that you found someone to spend the rest of your life with, who makes you happy. That's every father's goal. That, and making sure you know the basics of car maintenance."

She looked to him confused.

"He's happy, despite his sadness. It's just hard for him to see you as an adult and all grown up. I would have been the same way if I got to see Kelly married. I probably would have killed the guy who asked for my blessing. This guy you're marrying will _never_ be good enough for you, in your dad's eyes."

She nodded. "He told me that already."

"Well. Why does it still bother you?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. It just hurts knowing that I can't visit him at the drop of a hat."

"Why not?"

"I'll be married. I'll have other priorities."

He sighed. "Yes. A lot of things will change. But not all of them. You've had someone live with you before. Yeah, it's permanent this time, but I'm sure he'll understand you wanting to visit your dad. Just relax. Everything will turn out fine. I assure you."

She nodded. "Where is he?"

"In another room. Want me to bring him here?"

She nodded again. "Please, Agent Gibbs."

"You know. You don't have to call me that. You can call me Gibbs or even," he took a big breath, "Jethro."

She shook her head. "No, you're Agent Gibbs. I can always call you 'Granddad Gibbs'."

He glared at her. "Look. _My_ daughter would have been just a year older than you. So you've gone from "granddaughter" to me to more or less surrogate daughter. Honestly. Even though you're father is also like a son to me. Now isn't the time to argue semantics. I'll go get DiNozzo." He said, and turned for the door. "Oh yeah, you look beautiful, by the way."

She smiled. "Thanks."

* * *

After some minutes arguing with Tony, Gibbs led the father to his daughter before Ziva and Abby had his head for making her late for make-up. They didn't worry him too much. Mostly.

Tony put his hand on the door knob before taking a big breath, turning to his boss, "Boss..."

"DiNozzo. Go in. Your daughter needs you."

He nodded and opened the door, stepping into the carpeted room. "Hey Scout." He murmured, inhaling sharply as he took in his daughter in such an elegant gown. It was an Alfred Angelo gown, strapless. The trim across the top of the breasts were teal with a sequin design. The train inset was teal as well. The back of the dress was a lace up corset design. The rest of the dress was the traditional white. Her hair was loose and in curls, but pinned back off her face. It seemed to contradict the elegance of the dress, but it was something she would do.

She looked up as he walked in and quickly got up, walking over to him, hugging him immediately, starting to cry.

He was startled, but wrapped his arms around her. It seemed like so often she ended up like this, crying in his arms. But this was his job as 'Daddy'; to stop her tears and make her happy again. "Baby, what's wrong?"

"I don't want to upset you!"

"Kristina. I'm not...upset." Although there was a moment of hesitation.

"You're lying, Daddy." She said to him simply.

"I'm happy for you. I really am. I'm happily upset. To see you so happy and so grown up. It makes me feel proud that I was able to lead you to this point in your life. Truly, Scout. Every father gets upset on this day. But I don't want _you_ upset on your big day."

"Are you angry at me?"

"For what?"

"Getting married."

He laughed a jovial laugh. "No! Never! I'm so glad you're getting married. To know that you have found someone to spend the rest of your life with makes me giddy. Yeah, I think he can be an idiot. But I know he makes you happy, and I know he can provide for you."

"Are you going to cry today?"

He hesitated. "Yeah. Probably."

She hugged him still. "Me too."

"I know. But you're getting tears on my tux, Kristina." He said and winced. That sounded harsh.

"Oh!" She said and got off of him. "I hope I didn't mark it..." she said sniffling. She was not going to have anything to mess up her wedding photos, even if she was the cause of it. She had opted for white tails for her father, the groom, and the groomsmen, with the vests and ties being teal. Her bridesmaids dresses were teal as well.

He chuckled. "Your moods are so all over."

She nodded. "They have been for the past few days. I'm so nervous, Daddy. What if I fall?"

"I'll make sure you won't; it is my job after all."

"What if I stutter?"

"Allison. You're not going to mess up. Stop panicking. You're level headed and calm. You have this. You know what you're supposed to say."

She nodded, and took a deep breath. "I love you, Daddy, but I have to get make up put on." She said, making a slight face.

He nodded. "Alright, baby. I love you too." He said and kissed her forehead. "You have made me so very, very proud."

"If you keep talking like that I'm going to cry again." She said, eyes filling with tears, her voice cracking.

"Sorry. Uhm. Your hair is doing something funky..." he said gesturing on his own head with his hand, "back there."

She couldn't help but laugh. "I'll get Crystal to fix it. Bye Daddy." She said, hugging him one final time before exiting the room.

* * *

It was finally time. She was practically shaking with nerves and Tony was doing his best to calm her down, it was failing, just like all those times when she just had to cry as an infant.

"Daddy.. I-I-I..." she stuttered, her hands shaking.

He stood in front of her. "Allison! Chill. It's okay. Listen to Daddy. You're fine."

She nodded and watched as her bridesmaids disappeared through the door. Her wedding planner making a gesture for the two of them to pair up.

She got in her place, putting her hand in the crook of his elbow. "You look handsome, Daddy."

He nodded, taking a deep breath. "You look gorgeous, Scout."

"Thanks." She said, trying her best to not start crying.

Tony was trying his hardest to keep his composure, but he too was finding it nearly impossible.

As she walked down the aisle, she tried to ignore all the people just staring at her. Halfway down the aisle, she couldn't hold back the tears and they started falling, but at least she kept quiet about it. Tony cast a quick concerned look at her, and he gently pulled her just a little bit closer to him, trying to comfort her. Despite it all, she smiled through her tears, seeing her future husband just yards away from her.

She could do this.

* * *

Tony managed to give her away without breaking down, but right after he sat down, he couldn't help but letting a few tears out. He wasn't angry at her or upset at her, he was just happy. Okay, he was a bit hurt, but he knew that her life was now just starting. But that wouldn't ever stop his 'Daddy' instincts from kicking in. He was always going to be her protector. She was still his world.

* * *

Overall, the ceremony went off without a hitch, even though the bride was crying and her voice was choked. Tony had to admit, she made a beautiful bride. He watched as the couple walked down the aisle towards the doors, arm in arm. Once they were whisked off to the reception hall, he too went outside and to the limo were he and the groomsmen and bridesmaids were to ride in. He got in after Ziva, sitting next to her and leaned over to her. "You still have my six, Ziva?"

She nodded and looked to him curiously. "Yes. Why?"

"Because I'm going to need someone to make sure I don't get drunk off my rocker."

"You would get drunk at your daughter's wedding?"

"Not intentionally. It's just... it's hard, Ziva. I feel like I lost her."

She put a hand reassuringly over his. "I always have your back, Tony. Do not worry."

* * *

Kristina climbed into the limo before her new husband, completely at awe with the idea that she was now married. That she was now someone's wife. She knew she would feel this way again when she realized that one day, she would be someone's mom. But that would be at least a year off.

She was both excited and sad, but more of the former. She waited before her new husband was situated before kissing him gently. "You happy?"

He nodded. "Most definitely. You?"

She nodded. "It took some time, honestly. But I'm elated now. I feel like I lost my dad though."

"Don't worry, Allison. You haven't lost him. I doubt anything could sever the bond you two have. I hope to one day have that good of a bond with our future kids."

She nodded and smiled, releasing a breath. "Thank you." She murmured, leaning against him and enjoying the trip to the reception hall.

* * *

Tony watched the first dance of the couple as a smile graced his face. He was happy for his little girl. And although he would never admit it aloud, the pair made a rather nice looking couple.

Ziva came up behind him, and looked at the pair. "Nickel for your thoughts?"

He chuckled. "Penny. You never fail to amuse me Ziva. I'm alright though. Just getting a bit nervous for our dance though."

"Do you not dance?"

He shrugged. "I haven't danced in years, but I taught her how to, actually. I just hope she likes the song I picked out."

The was one of Kristina's stipulations, she didn't want to know the song for the father daughter dance, so it was entirely up to Tony, although that worried her slightly. As the song with her husband ended, her father stepped up, pulling her into his arms.

Just a few moments later, the beginning to Guns~N~Roses' "Sweet Child O' Mine" began. She laughed out loud at his choice, but soon enough, the song switched to The Beatles' "In My Life". She smiled up at him. "My favorite song."

He nodded. "I know. It's fitting though."

She nodded in agreement, her head resting on his chest as she started dancing with him. "Today was absolutely beautiful."

"Definitely."

"Daddy..."

"Hm?" he asked, and dipped her slightly.

"Thank you for being the best father ever."

He smiled. "It was nothing at all, baby."

She smiled and remained quiet the rest of the song, just enjoying being with her father in this moment.

Tony smiled over the top of her head and danced with his daughter, recollecting every memory he had with her. It seemed like a second had passed for the last twenty seven years. "I love you, Scout."

"I love you too, Daddy. Forever and always."

He smiled and kissed the top of her head as the song ended. "I don't plan on being a grandfather anytime soon, Allison." He said mock sternly.

She rolled her eyes with a grin. "I don't intend on being a mom anytime soon either." She said and kissed his cheek, then walked away.

* * *

Hours later, Tony found contentedness in the most oddest of places. The smell of sawdust filled the air as he poured a mason jar of bourbon. His coat had long been discarded, tossed aside.

He relived the day over and over, and the first couple of times he had thought about it, he shed a tear: His baby was gone. Grown up. Married. No longer his responsibility, technically. But then the bourbon kicked in and all was well in his mind.

Gibbs walked down into his basement, glancing at his agent, sitting on the floor in the once white pants of the tuxedo.

"DiNozzo."

The man looked up. "Hello Boss!" He said chipper.

"What are you doing?"

"Thinking! Don't worry, I won't touch the boat. I just couldn't be at my apartment right now."

Gibbs nodded. "Alright. I'll give you a ride home later."

Tony nodded. "K! Night!"

He spent the rest of the night drinking and touching the boat, despite what he told his boss. He could understand why Gibbs spent so much time down here. It was comforting in some fashion.

Tony wouldn't make it home that night as he would pass out underneath the boat, after searching for a seam that answered how Gibbs got the boat out. He was a bit of an odd duck when he had been drinking. However, his last thought before he passed out was a sobering one.

"Oh God. I'm turning into Gibbs."

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE 2**:

By the way, the groom is whomever you please :D I know who it is in my mind, but the rest is up to you.


	24. Final Word: Update

Hello readers!

**JULY 26, 2011: The sequel is now up. It's called "Ad Vitum" Check it out :)**

I haven't completely fallen off the face of the planet yet, but close! :) Anyway, I am presently updating this story: tweaking it here and there, adjusting story lines, making it overall a better story.

I am also in the process of finding a beta reader, so if you know someone who wants a completed story to look over as I look over it, please send them my way.

On a final note, I do have a sequel ready to come out. However, I do not have Microsoft Office so I work with word and any beta who would help out may have a heavy task ahead of them. But never fear, there is something in the works.

Thank you for hanging on for so long.

Yours, HookEmHorns


End file.
